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Updated: Aug 14, 2026

Assessment and Evaluation of the High Risk Neonate: The NICU Network Neurobehavioral Scale
Published on: August 25, 2014
[The sensitivity, specificity and prognostic values of peripheral secretions in the neonatal intensive unit]
Abstract:
We analyzed cultures (body surface and blood) from 125 infants-64 of them with proved neonatal bacterial sepsis. Isolates from cultures of material from the ear canal, nasopharynx, stomach, endotracheal tube were compared to those recovered from blood. The optimum sensitivity, specificity, and positive predictive values of surface cultures were 40%, 70.6% and 66.7% respectively. We conclude that surface cultures are of limited in predicting the etiology of sepsis in neonates.
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