Patient characteristics, reasons for end-of-life decisions and circumstances of death among infants admitted to the NICU (n=129)
| Patient characteristics | <25 weeks (n=45) | ≥25 weeks (n=84) | p Value |
| GA in weeks and days, median (IQR) | 24 3/7 (24 1/7–24 4/7) | 26 0/7 (25 2/7–26 6/7) | <0.0001 |
| Birth weight in grams, median (IQR) | 630 (590–710) | 735 (500–735) | <0.0001 |
| Female, n (%) | 22 (49) | 39 (46) | 0.79 |
| Multiplets, n (%) | 17 (38) | 22 (26) | 0.172 |
| Reason for end-of-life decision | |||
| Medical futility, n (%) | 29 (65) | 60 (72) | |
| Poor quality of life anticipated, n (%) | 15 (33) | 22 (26) | |
| Missing, n (%) | 1 (2) | 2 (2) | 0.69 |
| Respiratory support within 3 days of death | |||
| No mechanical ventilation, n (%) | 0 (0) | 0 (0) | |
| CPAP only, n (%) | 0 (0) | 2 (2) | |
| CMV, n (%) | 18 (40) | 44 (52) | |
| HFOV, n (%) | 23 (51) | 34 (40) | |
| Unknown, n (%) | 4 (9) | 4 (5) | 0.31 |
| Inhaled nitric oxide, n (%) | 9 (20) | 13 (15) | 0.42 |
| Maximum FiO2, mean (SD) | 0.77 (0.24) | 0.8 (0.29) | 0.75 |
| Cardiovascular support within 3 days of death | |||
| Dopamine, n (%) | 14 (31) | 38 (45) | 0.11 |
| Maximum dopamine dose in µg/kg/min, mean (SD) | 10 (6) | 14 (6) | 0.049 |
| Epinephrine, n (%) | 9 (20) | 16 (19) | 0.9 |
| Maximum epinephrine dose in µg/kg/min, mean (SD) | 0.5 (0.5) | 0.4 (0.3) | 0.5 |
| CPR within 12 hours of death, n (%) | 3 (7) | 11 (13) | 0.088 |
| Circumstances after ROC | |||
| Intubated at time of death, n (%) | 4 (9) | 13 (15) | 0.095 |
| Morphine administration after ROC, n (%) | 18 (40) | 56 (67) | 0.003 |
| Benzodiazepine administration after ROC, n (%) | 5 (11) | 13 (15) | 0.128 |
χ2 for proportions, Mann-Whitney U test for continuous variables.
Values in bold typeface are statistically significant at p<0.05.
CMV, conventional mechanical ventilation; CPAP, continuous positive airway pressure; CPR, cardiopulmonary resuscitation; FiO2, fractional inspired oxygen; GA, gestational age; HFOV, high-frequency oscillatory ventilation; NICU, neonatal intensive care unit; ROC, redirection of care.