| Summary: | <p><strong>Background</strong>: almost 5 million newborns die every year all over the world. 98% of them belong to developing countries. From 30% to 40% of neonatal deaths are related to infections. <br /><strong>Objective</strong>: to determine risk factors influencing the occurrence of hospital-acquired infections in a neonatology service. <strong><br />Methods</strong>: a case-control study was conducted in the Neonatology Service of the Dr. Gustavo Aldereguía Lima General University Hospital of Cienfuegos in 2007. Cases included 76 newborns with hospital-acquired infection and their controls as well as neonates without hospital-acquired infection at a rate of one control per case. The following variables were analyzed: sex, birth weight, age, prenatal medical history, type and duration of labor, use of antibiotics and type of sepsis. Chi-square method was used with a maximum error of 5% and the risk odds ratio was used with a confidence interval of 95%. <strong><br />Results</strong>: 42, 1% of those infected were between 1500 g and 2499 g at birth. Infants whose mothers had presented vaginal sepsis had a higher risk for infection (62, 3%, OR = 5.9). Preterm delivery (89, 5%), premature rupture of membrane (22.4%), and instrumentation were potential risks for hospital-acquired infection. <strong><br />Conclusions</strong>: Preterm birth, low birth weight, the use of instrumentation and vaginal sepsis in mothers were the main risk factors for the occurrence of hospital-acquired infections in neonates.</p>
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