Survival and main causes of morbidity and mortality in premature newborn in Ecuador.

Abstract

Abstract

Background: Prematurity is one of the main causes of morbidity and mortality in newborns in Ecuador and the world; in the last 20 years there has been an increase in its incidence with the consequent complications and associated risks.

Objective: Analyze the main causes of morbidity and mortality in premature infants in Ecuador, through a review of current literature published from 2015 to 2020 to improve survival in this age group.

Methodology: This study is a meta-analysis with a qualitative-quantitative approach; There was a manual search using digital repositories RRAAE, COBUEC, universities in the country and conference proceedings.The studies data included years from  2015 to 2020. For the quality analysis, there were used tools from the Joanna Briggs Institute;data extraction was performed in a spreadsheet.  A qualitative analysis of heterogeneity and a single proportion (prevalence) were obtained using the R program.

Results: There were neonatal and maternal outcomes showing high heterogeneity and publication bias, probably due to the different study designs and populations analyzed, the homogeneous data report that 55% of preterm infants are male, in the mother's education 0% none and 23% primary school.

Conclusions: There is a predominance of the male sex, probably a natural balance, reported by experts due to the fact that the male sex has a lower life expectancy, one out of every four mothers has primary education.  It is necessary to conduct well-designed and preferably multicenter studies.