Very Low Birth Weight Neonates: Experience in a Neonatology Intensive Care Unit

Background: The incidence of preterm births is increasing, therefore, so is the incidence of very low birth weight neonates (VLBW), defined as birth weight

Objective: Characterize the population of very low birth weight neonates on a Neonatology Intensive Care Unit (NICU) in a tertiary hospital and compare it with national data.

Methods: Data was collected from the National Registry of Very Low Birth Neonates (

Results: During this period, there were 8623 births in this hospital, 174 (2.0%) corresponding to VLBW neonates. 31.0% of these resulted from multiple gestations and 10.9% occurred in context of medically assisted reproduction. In-utero transfer to our hospital occurred in 33.9% of the cases and antenatal corticosteroid therapy was performed in 93.7% of the gestations. 75.3% of these neonates were born

Conclusion: It is important to have a national registry in order to improve our neonatal care. Our hospital had better results regarding complications and mortality compared to the national total. A correct follow-up of these patients is important.