KEY POINTS 1. Congenital heart diseases (CHDs) are an important cause of morbidity and mortality in young infants. These malformations account for approximately 300,000 deaths yearly. 2. Cardiac septal defects are the most common type of anomalies. Ventricular septal defects…
KEY POINTS 1. Congenital heart disease (CHDs) are seen in 6 to 10 per 1000 live births. These include structural defects of the heart, of the great vessels, or both. 2. During the newborn period, the most important presenting features…
KEY POINTS 1. Fungal infections including invasive Candida infections and molds (aspergillosis and mucormycosis) are devastating infections most commonly complicating extreme preterm infants due to their underdeveloped immune system combined with the need for intensive care and any neonate with…
KEY POINTS 1. Congenital syphilis is a global public health problem, particularly in the Americas where its incidence appears to be rising. 2. At birth 90% of infants are asymptomatic, the remaining 10% present a wide variety of symptoms from…
KEY POINTS 1. Cytomegalovirus (CMV) infection is acquired in the postnatal period primarily from mother’s milk feeding. 2. Postnatal CMV (pCMV) infection is usually asymptomatic in healthy term infants. Among very low birth weight (VLBW, birth weight <1500 g) infants,…
KEY POINTS 1. Neonatal herpes simplex virus (HSV) infections can cause potentially devastating infections in newborn infants. 2. HSV has a double-stranded linear DNA genome and is seen in two variants, HSV-type 1 and HSV-type 2. 3. Neonatal HSV infections…
KEY POINTS 1. Late-onset sepsis in the neonatal intensive care unit is defined by culture-confirmed infection ≥72 hours after birth. 2. Incidence is highest among preterm infants. 3. The pathophysiology involves colonization with perinatally and/or hospital-acquired organisms, with transition to…
KEY POINTS 1. Early-onset sepsis (EOS) is defined by blood and/or cerebrospinal fluid culture-confirmed infection occurring 0 to 6 days after birth. 2. Incidence is highest among preterm infants, particularly those born with low gestational ages and with birth weight…
KEY POINTS 1. Disorders of sex development (DSD) is an umbrella term referring to the large collection of conditions in which establishment of chromosomal, gonadal, or anatomic sex development is atypical. 2. Estimates of the prevalence of DSD vary widely,…
KEY POINTS 1. Disorders of mineral homeostasis in the neonatal period are often exaggerated responses to the normal physiologic transition. Parathyroid hormone (PTH) is the principal regulator of postnatal calcium metabolism, with vitamin D and its metabolites involved in the…