Morbidities and rehospitalizations during the first year of life in moderate and late preterm infants: more similarities than differences?

Background: The aim was to compare neonatal morbidities in moderate and late preterm infants and to analyze rates and causes for rehospitalizations during the first year of life.

Methods: Prospective follow-up of a group of moderate and late preterm infants at a tertiary care hospital.

Results: The study population comprised 215 infants (58% males; 60% singletons; 99 moderate and 116 late preterm infants) with a median gestational age of 34 weeks and birth weight of 2100 grams; 20% of them were small for gestational age. Moderate preterm infants more often had a diagnosis of mild respiratory distress syndrome (26% vs. 13%, P<0.01) and feeding problems with longer need for nasogastric tube feeding (median 9.5 vs. 4.2 days, P<0.01) and parenteral nutrition (3.5 vs. 2.7 days, P<0.01), and longer duration of stay at either NICU (10.6 vs. 3.7 days; P<0.01) or hospital (13 vs. 11 days; P<0.01). Fifty-two infants (24.3%) were hospitalized at 67 occasions without differences regarding readmission rates and causes between groups. Median age at readmission was 3 months, median stay 4 days. The most common diagnosis was respiratory illness (43.3%).

Conclusions: Moderate preterm infants had more neonatal morbidities diagnosed, but the same rehospitalization rates than late preterm infants.