Risk Factors for Neonatal Sepsis in Ibn Sina Hospital

Background: Newborn sepsis is a potentially fatal systemic infection that occurs within the first 28 days of life and continues to be a primary cause of newborn mortality and morbidity in low-resource settings. Neonatal sepsis is caused by bacterial, viral, or fungal infections entering the circulation, either vertically from the mother or horizontally from the hospital environment, and the non-specific clinical presentation makes early identification difficult. Objectives: Is to identify antenatal and perinatal variables that contribute to early or late sepsis in newborns at Ibn Sina Teaching Hospital in Mosul, Iraq. Methods: The study is an observational, descriptive, case control study. It was conducted between the 10th of April 2025 to the end of November 2025 at Ibn Sina Teaching Hospital in Mosul city. The study included 100 patients divided into two groups (50 patients and 50 controls). The questionnaire was composed from three tools. The first tool for maternal risk factor assessment sheet. The second Tool for neonatal risk factors and the third tool for neonatal intensive care unit related factors. Results: The mean age ± standard deviation of the study participants is 8.53 ± 3.83 days. Male: Female ratio was 1.041:1. Comparison between cases and controls regarding showed statistically significant difference regarding parity (P value = 0.043), positive history of PROM (P value < 0.001), UTI (P value <0.001), and antenatal antibiotic use (P value = 0.042). Moreover, statistically significant difference between them regarding their birth weight (P value <0.001), gestational age (P value <0.001), Low APGAR score (P value <0.001), birth asphyxia (P value <0.001), need for resuscitation (P value <0.001), congenital anomalies (P value = 0.046) and breast-feeding history (P value <0.001). Lastly, statistically significant difference between them regarding use of venous catheter (P value = 0.039), mechanical ventilation (P value <0.001) and prolonged hospitalization (P value <0.001). Conclusion: This study established that both maternal, neonatal and hospital factors contributed to the risk of neonatal sepsis. According to the current study's findings, universal screening for rectovaginal GBS colonization of all pregnant women at 35-37 weeks gestation is recommended to give prophylaxis antibiotic for indicated ladies.