Tshehla, Rosine MarieCoetzee, MelanthaBecker, Piet J.2024-07-112024-07-112023-12Tshehla, R.M., Coetzee, M. & Becker, P.J. 2023, 'The impact of hypothermia in a tertiary hospital neonatal unit', South African Journal of Child Health, vol. 17, no. 4, art. e1922, pp. 201-206, doi : 10.7196/SAJCH.2023.v17i4.1922.1994-3032 (print)1999-7671 (online)10.7196/SAJCH.2023.v17i4.1922http://hdl.handle.net/2263/96923BACKGROUND : Neonatal hypothermia, defined as a body temperature <36.5°C, is a known contributor to neonatal morbidity and mortality. The admission temperature is an important predictor of neonatal outcomes, and a measure of quality of care. OBJECTIVES : This study aims to determine the incidence of and factors associated with hypothermia on admission to the neonatal unit at Steve Biko Academic Hospital (SBAH), a public tertiary hospital in South Africa. METHODS : A retrospective, cross-sectional study of infants admitted to the neonatal unit from September 2019 to February 2020 using data from patient records. RESULTS : The overall incidence of hypothermia on admission was 66% (mild 25%, moderate to severe 41%), with a mean (standard deviation (SD)) admission temperature of 35.1 (4.7)°C, and 82% (mild 19%, moderate to severe 62%) in very-low-birthweight infants. Infants remained hypothermic for a mean (SD) of 4.1 (3.9) hours post admission. Birthweight ≤1 500 g (odds ratio (OR) 1.87; p=0.019), admission to the neonatal intensive care unit (OR 1.97; p<0.0001), and admission from the delivery room within the first 60 minutes of life (OR 3.06; p=0.026) were independent risk factors for hypothermia. Hypothermia was associated with increased duration of respiratory support (mean 3.2 (5.6) v. 1.7 (4.5) days; p<0.0001), and longer length of hospital stay (mean 17.9 (18.8) v. 10.9 (12.6) days; p<0.0001). CONCLUSION : The incidence of hypothermia on admission to the unit is significantly high, and hypothermic infants take a significant length of time to regain normothermia. A standardised protocol for the prevention and management of hypothermia needs to be introduced in the unit.enThis open-access article is distributed under Creative Commons licence CC-BY-NC 4.0.Neonatal hypothermiaHypothermiaNeonatal unitSteve Biko Academic Hospital complex (SBAH)Public tertiary hospitalSouth Africa (SA)SDG-03: Good health and well-beingArticle