Extremely premature infants: How does death in the delivery room influence mortality rates in two level 3 centers in France?

Objectives: Mortality rates of very preterm infants may vary considerably between healthcare facilities depending on the neonates' place of inclusion in the cohort study. The objective of this study was to compare the mortality rates of live-born extremely preterm neonates observed in two French tertiary referral hospitals, taking into account the occurrence of neonatal death both in the delivery room and in the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU).

Methods: Retrospective observational study including all pregnancy terminations, stillbirths and live-born infants within a 22- to 26-week gestational age range was registered by two French level 3 university centers between 2009 and 2013.