Clinical study of RDW and prognosis in sepsis new borns.

Aims of the present study were to investigate the relationship between red blood cell volume distribution width (RDW) and severity of the disease with prognosis in sepsis newborns. RDW, clinical features and prognosis in 97 sepsis newborns were analyzed retrospectively. Fifity-eightsepsis newborns showed increase of RDW with the incidence of 59.79%, including 13 cases from sepsis group, 23 cases from severe sepsis group and 22 cases from septic shock group (the same order below), with the incidence of RDW increase of 31.71%, 76.67% and 84.62%, respectively, and the differences were significantly significant (P<0.001). The mortalities of the three groups were 15.38%, 39.13% and 50.00%, respectively, and there were not statistically differences (P>0.05). The incidence of RDW increase in survival group (49.32%) was significantly lower than that in the death group (91.67%). The neonatal critical illness score (NCIS) was negatively correlated with RDW increase in newborns, while the mortality was positively correlated with RDW increase (P<0.001). RDW increase in newborns with severe sepsis and septic shock has a higher incidence, and the level of RDW increase is closely associated with the prognosis