Hospital-based case--control study of risk factors for early neonatal mortality in the Gaza Strip/Etude cas-temoins en milieu hospitalier des facteurs de risque de mortalite neonatale precoce dans la bande de Gaza

Background: Early neonatal death is an essential epidemiological indicator of maternal and child health. Aims: To identify risk factors for early neonatal deaths in the Gaza Strip. Methods: This hospital-based case--control study included 132 women who experienced neonatal deaths from January to September 2018. The control group comprised 264 women who were selected using systematic random sampling and gave birth to live newborns at the time of data collection. Results: The controls who had no history of neonatal death or stillbirth were less likely to have an early neonatal death than women who had such history. The controls who did not have meconium aspiration syndrome or amniotic fluid complications were less likely to have an early neonatal death than women who experienced these complications during delivery. The controls who had a singleton birth outcome were less likely to have an early neonatal death than women who had multiple births. Conclusion: Interventions are needed to provide preconception care, improve the quality of intrapartum and postnatal care, provide high-quality health education, and improve the quality of care provided by neonatal intensive care units in the Gaza Strip. Keywords: neonatal mortality, risk factor, intervention, case control, Gaza Strip Contexte: La mortalite neonatale precoce est un indicateur epidemiologique essentiel de la sante maternelle et infantile. Objectifs: Identifier les facteurs de risque des deces neonatals precoces dans la bande de Gaza. Methodes: La presente etude cas-temoins en milieu hospitalier a ete menee aupres de 132 femmes ayant perdu un/des nouveau-ne(s) entre janvier et septembre 2018. Le groupe temoin comprenait 264 femmes qui ont ete selectionnees par echantillonnage aleatoire systematique et qui ont donne naissance a des nouveau-nes vivants au moment de la collecte des donnees. Resultats: Les temoins qui n'avaient pas d'antecedents de deces neonatal ou de mortinatalite etaient moins susceptibles d'avoir un deces neonatal precoce que les femmes qui avaient de tels antecedents. Les temoins qui n'avaient pas de syndrome d'aspiration meconiale ou de complications au niveau du liquide amniotique etaient moins susceptibles d'avoir un deces neonatal precoce que les femmes ayant connu ces complications pendant l'accouchement. Les temoins qui ont eu une grossesse unique avaient une moins grande probabilite d'avoir un deces neonatal precoce que les femmes ayant eu des naissances multiples. Conclusion: I