Table 1.
Demographic and clinical characteristics of all subjects categorized according to early empiric antibiotic exposure
| No EEAE (n = 137) | Short EEAE (n = 802) | Prolonged EEAE (n = 320) | p-value | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Gestational age, weeks + days (median [IQR]) | 28 + 6 [27 + 6–29 + 3] | 27 + 6 [26 + 1–28 + 6] | 27 + 1 [25 + 6–28 + 4] | < 0.001 |
| Birth weight, gram, mean (SD) | 1001 (280) | 1055 (262) | 940 (261) | < 0.001 |
| Birthweight, z-score, mean (SD) | − 0.48 (0.94) | 0.24 (0.80) | − 0.02 (0.90) | < 0.001 |
| SGA, n (%) | 27 (20) | 41 (5) | 31 (10) | < 0.001 |
| Gender, female, n (%) | 80 (58) | 364 (46) | 143 (45) | 0.02 |
| Delivery mode, vaginal, n (%) | 14 (10) | 439 (55) | 145 (46) | < 0.001 |
| Singleton, n (%) | 110 (80) | 534 (66) | 210 (66) | 0.002 |
| Invasive ventilation at 48–72 h of life, n (%) | 16 (12) | 168 (21) | 149 (47) | < 0.001 |
| Inotropic medication at 48–72 h of life, n (%) | 0 (0) | 25 (3) | 37 (12) | < 0.001 |
| Enteral feeding type | 0.01 | |||
|
Human milk, n (%) Formula milk, n (%) Combination, n (%) |
80 (65) 16 (13) 28 (23) |
562 (74) 100 (13) 101 (13) |
232 (78) 22 (7) 43 (14) |
|
| Parental feeding, days (median [IQR]) | 9 [6–11] | 9 [7–11] | 10 [8–11] | < 0.001 |
| EEAE duration, days (median (IQR]) | N/A | 3 [2–3] | 7 [6–8] | < 0.001 |
| Highest CRP within first 72 h of life | < 0.001 | |||
|
≥ 10 mg/L, n (%) missing values, n (%) |
1 (1%) 58 (42%) |
37 (5%) 78 (10%) |
103 (32%) 35 (11%) |
|
| Age of NEC onset, days (median [IQR]) | 11 [9–20] | 13 [9–20] | 14 [10–18] | 0.84 |
| Age of LOS onset, days (median [IQR]) | 6 [4–10] | 9 [6–12] | 11 [9–15] | < 0.001 |
Data are summarized as mean and standard deviation (SD) or number and percentage (%), unless stated otherwise
AB antibiotics, CRP C-reactive protein, EEAE early empiric antibiotic exposure, GA gestational age, LOS late-onset sepsis, N/A not applicable, NEC necrotizing enterocolitis, PPROM premature prolonged rupture of membranes, NICU neonatal intensive care unit, SGA small for gestational age