INTRAVENOUS IMMUNOGLOBULIN IN THE TREATMENT OF NEONATAL SEPTICEMIA

  • 1 January 1981
    • journal article
    • research article
    • Vol. 111  (44) , 1649-1655
Abstract
The therapeutic effect of a polyvalent Ig preparation for i.v. use was tested in 82 newborns with bacterial infections. Of the children, 35 had neonatal sepsis; in the other 47, bacteremia was not detectable. Treatment consisted either of antibiotics only or of antibiotics combined with Ig SRK on an alternating basis for the first 6 days. Ig substitution was tolerated without complications. In the group of infants with neonatal sepsis, 2 of 20 (10%) who were substituted with Ig and 4 of 15 (26%) who received no Ig died. In the group of patients without detectable bacteriemia, 2 of 21 on Ig substitution (10%) and 4 of the 26 who were not substituted (15%) died. The low mortality observed was attributed to efforts at early diagnosis, conventional early treatment and Ig substitution. To detect possible late sequelae of Ig therapy, particularly in hypogammaglobulinemic premature newborns, cinical and immunological investigations were performed in the septic patient group at the age of 1-4 yr. There were no indications that administration of Ig during the neonatal period might have had an adverse effect on psychomotor and somatic development or on the immunological maturation of the infants.