BACKGROUND Babies of the gestational age group 28 -34 weeks (Moderate-to-Severe Preterm) constitute a major proportion of preterm births, and in a country like ours they have better outcome in terms of mortality, morbidity, long-term adverse consequences and financial implications when compared to extreme preterm (< 28 weeks) babies. Therefore, surveying of these babies is a need for planning interventional strategies to reduce neonatal mortality and morbidity rate. MATERIALS AND METHODSThis is a retrospective, observational, record-based study done in the Department of Neonatology, Government Medical College, Ernakulam over a period of 3 years. All preterm babies in the gestation 28 +0 to 33 +6 weeks admitted to the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) during the period were included in the study. The main outcome measures were major morbidities prior to hospital discharge. RESULTSThere were 2491 deliveries during the study period, of which preterm deliveries (< 37 weeks) constituted 20.75%. The incidence of inborn preterm delivery in the gestation 28 +0 -33 +6 weeks was 50 per 1000 live births (5.02%). Severe preterm babies (28 +0 -31 +6 weeks) constituted (48.72%) with mean weight of 1.29 ± 0.27 kg and moderate preterms (32 +0 -33 +6 ) constituted (51.28%) with mean weight of 1.72 ± 0.35 kg. The mortality in the study group was only (4.48%). Hyperbilirubinaemia was the most common morbidity (63.46 %) followed by respiratory distress syndrome (58.33%) and blood culture positive Sepsis (27.56%).

BACKGROUND Congenital Hypothyroidism (CH) is one of the most common disorders related to mental impairment and growth retardation in newborns. The main objective of screening is to detect and treat them early so as to prevent or minimize the neuropsychological damage which can be irreversible if the treatment is delayed beyond the first few weeks of life. In our institution, we do concomitant T4 and TSH after 48 hours of birth for screening. This study is aimed at assessing the usefulness of cord blood thyroid stimulating hormone (CBTSH) screening compared to TSH on 3 rd postnatal day. METHODS A retrospective study was done in 272 term neonates at birth to analyse the cord blood TSH levels and TSH levels were tested for on 3rd postnatal day. The values were statistically analysed using Fisher's exact test. RESULTS 272 babies were enrolled in the study. 17 (6.25%) babies had cord blood TSH above 20 mIU/ml and 11 (4.04%) babies had TSH values more than 10 mIU/ml in the 3 rd day sample. The mean value of CBTSH was 9.68 microU/ml (SD +/-8.47) and that of 3 rd day TSH was 3.76 microU/ml (SD +/-3.17). 4 out of the 11 babies with elevated TSH levels on 3 rd day was found to have congenital hypothyroidism on further follow up. CONCLUSIONS This study reveals a high proportion of congenital hypothyroidism when compared to national and international references, thus highlighting the need for universal screening. According to our study, cord blood TSH cannot substitute the 3 rd day TSH for diagnosing congenital hypothyroidism.