Abstract
Background: Bronchopulmonary dysplasia (BPD) is the most common cause of
chronic lung disease in children born prematurely. There is little
information about the epidemiology and severity of BPD places with high
altitude. This study aimed to evaluate the frequency of BPD severity
levels and the associated risk factors with severity in a cohort of
preterm newborns ≤34 weeks of gestational age born in Rionegro, Colombia
Materials and methods: We carried out a retrospective analytical cohort
of preterm newborns without major malformations from Rionegro, Colombia
between 2011-2018 admitted to neonatal intensive unit at high altitude
(2200m above sea level). The main outcomes were the incidence and
severity of bronchopulmonary dysplasia.
Results: The bronchopulmonary dysplasia incidence was 25.7% (95% CI,
21.6-29.9). Bronchopulmonary dysplasia was moderate in 62.1% of
patients and severe in 26.7%. After modeling regression analysis, the
final variables associated with BPD severity levels were: sepsis (OR
2.37 CI 95% 1.04-5.40) and pulmonary hypertension (OR 3.79 CI95%
1.19-12).
Conclusion: The incidence of BPD was higher and similar to cities with
higher altitudes. In our population, the variables associated with BPD
severity levels were: duration of oxygen therapy and pulmonary
hypertension. It is necessary to increase the awareness of risk factors,
the effect of clinical practices, and early recognition of
bronchopulmonary dysplasia to reduce morbidity in patients with this
pathology.
Keywords: Bronchopulmonary dysplasia , severity , incidence,
Colombia, oxygen, hypertension