Background: Neonatal sepsis complicated with neutropenia increases risk of mortality by 50%. The immature neutrophil production of neonates is often overwhelmed by severe infection. Granulocyte colony stimulating factor (G-CSF), a naturally occurring cytokine used to support neutrophil recovery during chemotherapy, is a possible treatment that can improve outcomes of neonatal sepsis. Objectives: To determine the efficacy of G-CSF in decreasing mortality and morbidity in septic neonates. Methodology: Electronic searches were conducted on online journal databases. Unpublished or ongoing studies ere sought in training institutions accredited by the Philippine Pediatric Society. The investigators included randomized control trials using G-CSF on septic neonates. Results: Twenty-two trials were identified and thirteen were assessed to be eligible for review. The studies had a total of 530 participants, with the largest having 78 subjects. Relative risks (RR), mean differences (MD) and standard mean differences (SMD) with 95% confidence intervals (CI) using the fixed effect model and random effects model were reported in the results. There was a significant decrease in mortality (RR 0.69, 95% CI 0.48 to 0.99) with a greater reduction for preterm neonates, low birth weight neonates and neutropenic neonates. There was no significant reduction in morbidities caused by neonatal sepsis. Conclusions There is moderate quality evidence that suggests that G-CSF as an adjunct treatment for neonatal sepsis significantly decreases mortality with greater benefit to preterm neonates, low birth weight neonates and those with baseline neutropenia. The studies did not show any benefit in reducing sepsis-related morbidity.
Neonatal Sepsis ; Neutropenia

Objective: This pilot study investigated whether serum B-type Natriuretic Peptide (BNP), bioelectrical impedance analysis (BIA), and left ventricular end-diastolic diameter (LVEDD) can be used to predict fluid overload and clinical outcomes in pediatric sepsis. Methods: Pediatric sepsis patients were enrolled. BNP, BIA, and LVEDD were obtained on admission and on Day 3. Diagnostic performances of BNP, BIA, LVEDD and correlation with fluid status were obtained. Results: Twenty-two patients were enrolled. Day 3 BNP was higher in non-survivors (9241 vs. 682.2 pg/mL, p=0.04) and day 3 LVEDD Z-score was lower in non-survivors (-3.51 vs. -0.01, p=0.023). There was no difference in the fluid balance between survivors and non-survivors. Admission BNP >670.34pg/mL predicted vasopressor use with a sensitivity of 85.71% and specificity of 86.67% while ΔBNP>5388.13pg/mL predicted mortality with 100% sensitivity. Day 3 LVEDD <22mm predicted mortality with a sensitivity of 94.74%. Cumulative fluid balance was strongly correlated with BIA and LVEDD (r=0.65, p=0.001; r=0.74, p<0.001 respectively). The median length of stay in hospital days for non-survivors was not significantly different from survivors (4 [1-12] vs. 8 [6-12] days,p=0.21). Conclusion Rise in BNP levels appear to be independent of fluid status and is a good predictor of mortality, vasopressor, and mechanical ventilator use but not of length of hospital stay. LVEDD and BIA are good estimates of cumulative fluid balance but not as predictors of mortality, vasopressor, mechanical ventilator use, and length of hospital stay. Significance of the outcomes of the study was limited due to the small sample size.
Natriuretic Peptide, Brain ; Echocardiography