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A Controlled Mouse Model for Neonatal Polymicrobial Sepsis
Published on: January 27, 2019
Use of melatonin as an adjuvant therapy in neonatal sepsis
M El Frargy1, H M El-Sharkawy1, G F Attia2
1Department of Pediatric, Faculty of Medicine, Tanta University, Egypt.
Insights
Melatonin as an adjuvant therapy significantly improved clinical and laboratory outcomes in infants with neonatal sepsis. This study shows promising results for melatonin in treating this serious condition.
Area of Science:
- Neonatal medicine
- Pharmacology
- Infectious diseases
Background:
- Neonatal sepsis is a serious condition with significant morbidity and mortality.
- Adjuvant therapies are being explored to improve treatment outcomes.
- Melatonin's antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties suggest potential therapeutic benefits.
Purpose of the Study:
- To evaluate the therapeutic efficacy of melatonin as an adjuvant therapy for neonatal sepsis.
- To assess the impact of melatonin on clinical and laboratory parameters in septic neonates.
Main Methods:
- Prospective clinical trial with 50 neonates diagnosed with sepsis.
- Intervention group received melatonin plus antibiotics; control group received antibiotics only.
- Sepsis score, based on clinical and laboratory criteria, was used for comparison.
Main Results:
- No significant difference in sepsis scores before treatment.
- Significant improvement in sepsis scores at 24, 48, and 72 hours in the melatonin group compared to the control group (p<0.01).
- Both groups showed improvement, but the intervention group experienced greater improvement.
Conclusions:
- Melatonin as an adjuvant therapy is associated with improved clinical and laboratory outcomes in neonatal sepsis.
- The findings support the use of melatonin to enhance the treatment of neonatal sepsis.
Objective:
The objective of this study is to evaluate the therapeutic efficacy of melatonin as an adjuvant therapy in treating neonatal sepsis.
Patients And Methods:
A prospective clinical trial study was conducted on 50 infants with neonatal sepsis diagnosed on the basis of both clinical and laboratory criteria. Enrolled infants were divided into two groups. Intervention group (n = 25) received melatonin and antibiotics, while the control group (n = 25) was treated with antibiotics only. Melatonin was administered as a single oral dose of 20 mg and antibiotics were administered according to a standard protocol. Both groups were compared using a predefined sepsis score utilizing both clinical and laboratory parameters.
Results:
There was no significant difference in sepsis score between both groups before starting melatonin (p-value = 0.99), while there was significant difference in sepsis score between groups after 24 hours, 48 hours and 72 hours of starting melatonin with (p-value = 0.008, 0.006 and 0.002, respectively). There was significant improvement sepsis score in both groups with more improvement of sepsis score in the intervention group.
Conclusion:
Administration of melatonin as an adjuvant therapy in the treatment of neonatal sepsis is associated with improvement of clinical and laboratory outcomes.
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