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ObjectiveTo determine if survival rates of preterm infants receiving active perinatal care improve over time.DesignThe German Neonatal Network is a cohort study of preterm infants with birth weight <1500 g. All eligible infants receiving active perinatal care are registered. We analysed data of patients discharged between 2011 and 2016.Setting43 German level III neonatal intensive care units (NICUs).Patients8222 preterm infants with a gestational age between 22/0 and 28/6 weeks who received active perinatal care.InterventionsParticipating NICUs were grouped according to their specific survival rate from 2011 to 2013 to high (percentile >P75), intermediate (P25–P75) and low (

Aim In animal studies, aminoglycosides induced ductus arteriosus relaxation in a dose‐dependent fashion. We tested the hypothesis that antibiotic treatment of preterm infants with aminoglycosides is associated with higher rates of surgical patent ductus arteriosus (PDA) closure. Methods Preterm infants (birthweight <1000 grams or gestational age <29 weeks) enrolled in 62 German neonatal intensive care units (NICUs) were analysed. NICUs were stratified according to the use of aminoglycosides as first‐line antibiotics. Results Baseline data were not different when NICUs using aminoglycosides (n = 9965 infants) were compared to NICUs using other antibiotics (n = 1948 infants). Rates of surgical PDA closure were 5.9% for NICUs using aminoglycosides; 6.2% for units using gentamicin; and 5.0% for NICUs using tobramycin compared to 4.1% in NICUs using other antibiotics (P < .001, P < .001 and P = .140, respectively, Fisher's exact test). Indomethacin and ibuprofen use was more common in NICUs using aminoglycosides (41% vs 33%, P < .001, Fisher's exact test). Gentamicin trough levels were higher in NICUs with surgical closure rates above the mean (median 2.0 µg/mL, inter‐quartile range 0.8‐4.0 µg/mL vs 1.2 µg/mL, IQR 0.8‐1.7, P < .001, Mann‐Whitney U test). Conclusion First‐line antibiotic treatment of preterm infants with aminoglycosides was associated with higher rates of surgical PDA closure.

The connection between Pediatric Inflammatory Multisystem Syndrome (PIMS) and Kawasaki Disease (KD) is not yet fully understood. Using the same national registry, clinical features and outcome of children hospitalized in Germany, and Innsbruck (Austria) were compared. Reported to the registry were 395 PIMS and 69 KD hospitalized patients. Patient age in PIMS cases was higher than in KD cases (median 7 [IQR 4–11] vs. 3 [IQR 1–4] years). A majority of both PIMS and KD patients were male and without comorbidities. PIMS patients more frequently presented with organ dysfunction, with the gastrointestinal (80%), cardiovascular (74%), and respiratory (52%) systems being most commonly affected. By contrast, KD patients more often displayed dermatological (99% vs. 68%) and mucosal changes (94% vs. 64%), plus cervical lymph node swelling (51% vs. 34%). Intensive care admission (48% vs. 19%), pulmonary support (32% vs. 10%), and use of inotropes/vasodilators (28% vs. 3%) were higher among PIMS cases. No patients died. Upon patient discharge, potentially irreversible sequelae—mainly cardiovascular—were reported (7% PIMS vs. 12% KD). Despite differences in age distribution and disease severity, PIMS and KD cases shared many common clinical and prognostic characteristics. This supports the hypothesis that the two entities represent a syndrome continuum.

We report a case of an extremely low birth weight premature infant born at 27 weeks of gestation, transferred to our tertiary pediatric referral center for surgical repair of an esophageal atresia. Endoscopic evaluation before the start of surgery revealed a hypopharyngeal perforation, resulting in the false impression of esophageal atresia. If no tracheoesophageal fistula is found during tracheoscopy, esophagoscopy should be done before surgical intervention as the inability to pass a nasogastric tube into the stomach is not sufficiently reliable for a correct diagnosis of esophageal atresia.