Patient's question:
The child has only been born for eighteen days. On the twelfth day, they developed a fever and became ill. The test results show bacterial infection in the blood. What should be done about sepsis in newborns?Doctor's answer:
Neonatal sepsis refers to a systemic infection caused by bacteria invading the bloodstream during the neonatal period, where the bacteria multiply and produce toxins, sometimes leading to metastatic lesions within the body. The incidence rate of neonatal sepsis accounts for 0.1% to 0.01% of live births. The incidence is higher in premature infants. There are three modes of infection: prenatal, intrapartum, and postpartum. Antibiotics are typically used for treatment. For suspected sepsis patients, before the pathogen is cleared, it is generally advisable to use penicillinase-resistant penicillins or third-generation cephalosporins. The specific regimen can be determined based on the epidemiological characteristics of local strains and the prevalence of drug-resistant strains. Sensitive antibiotics should be administered according to culture results.