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Updated: Feb 27, 2026
The Perinatal Asphyxiated Lamb Model: A Model for Newborn Resuscitation
Published on: August 15, 2018
Delivery room resuscitation and adverse outcomes among very low birth weight preterm infants
S Arnon1,2, T Dolfin1,2, B Reichman2,3
1Department of Neonatology, Meir Medical Center, Kfar Saba, Israel.
Objective:
To evaluate risk factors and impact of delivery room cardiopulmonary resuscitation (DR-CPR) on very low birth weight (VLBW) preterm infants.
Study Design:
A national, population-based, observational study evaluating risk factors and short-term neonatal outcomes associated with DR-CPR among VLBW, extremely preterm infants (EPIs, 24 to 27 weeks' gestation) and very preterm infants (VPI, 28 to 31 weeks' gestation) born in 1995 to 2010.
Results:
Among 17 564 VLBW infants, 636 (3.6%) required DR-CPR. In the group of 6478 EPI, 412 (6.4%) received DR-CPR compared with 224 of 11 086 infants (2.0%) in the VPI group. EPI who underwent DR-CPR had higher odds ratios (ORs (95% confidence interval)) for mortality compared to EPI not requiring DR-CPR (OR 3.32 (2.58, 4.29)), grades 3 to 4 intraventricular hemorrhage (IVH) (OR 1.59 (1.20, 2.10)) and periventricular leukomalacia (OR 1.81 (1.17, 2.82)). DR-CPR among VPI was associated with higher ORs for mortality (OR 4.99 (3.59, 6.94)), early sepsis (OR 2.07 (1.05, 4.09)), grades 3 to 4 IVH (OR 3.74 (2.55, 5.50)) and grades 3 to 4 retinopathy of prematurity (ROP) (OR 2.53 (1.18, 5.41)) compared to VPI not requiring DR-CPR. Only 11% of infants in the EPI DR-CPR group had favorable outcomes compared with 44% in the VPI DR-CPR group. Significantly higher ORs for mortality, IVH and ROP were found in the VPI compared to the EPI group.
Conclusion:
Preterm VLBW infants requiring DR-CPR were at increased risk of adverse outcomes compared to those not requiring CPR. This effect was more pronounced in the VPI group.
