Abstract Sepsis remains a leading cause of morbidity and mortality in the neonatal population, and at present, there is no unified definition of neonatal sepsis. Existing consensus sepsis definitions within paediatrics are not suited for use in the NICU and do not address sepsis in the premature population. Many neonatal research and surveillance networks have criteria for the definition of sepsis within their publications though these vary greatly and there is typically a heavy emphasis on microbiological culture. The concept of organ dysfunction as a diagnostic criterion for sepsis is rarely considered in neonatal literature, and it remains unclear how to most accurately screen neonates for organ dysfunction. Accurately defining and screening for sepsis is important for clinical management, health service design and future research. The progress made by the Sepsis-3 group provides a roadmap of how definitions and screening criteria may be developed. Similar initiatives in neonatology are likely to be more challenging and would need to account for the unique presentation of sepsis in term and premature neonates. The outputs of similar consensus work within neonatology should be twofold: a validated definition of neonatal sepsis and screening criteria to identify at-risk patients earlier in their clinical course. Impact There is currently no consensus definition of neonatal sepsis and the definitions that are currently in use are varied. A consensus definition of neonatal sepsis would benefit clinicians, patients and researchers. Recent progress in adults with publication of Sepsis-3 provides guidance on how a consensus definition and screening criteria for sepsis could be produced in neonatology. We discuss common themes and potential shortcomings in sepsis definitions within neonatology. We highlight the need for a consensus definition of neonatal sepsis and the challenges that this task poses.

中文翻译：

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制定新生儿败血症共识定义的挑战

摘要 脓毒症仍然是新生儿人群发病和死亡的主要原因，目前尚无新生儿脓毒症的统一定义。儿科中现有的共识败血症定义不适用于 NICU，也不能解决早产人群中的败血症。许多新生儿研究和监测网络在其出版物中都有定义败血症的标准，尽管这些标准差异很大，并且通常非常强调微生物培养。新生儿文献中很少考虑将器官功能障碍作为脓毒症诊断标准的概念，目前尚不清楚如何最准确地筛查新生儿器官功能障碍。准确定义和筛查败血症对于临床管理、卫生服务设计和未来研究非常重要。Sepsis-3 小组取得的进展提供了如何制定定义和筛选标准的路线图。新生儿科的类似举措可能更具挑战性，需要考虑足月和早产儿败血症的独特表现。新生儿学中类似共识工作的产出应该是双重的：新生儿败血症的有效定义和筛查标准，以在临床病程早期识别有风险的患者。影响 目前新生儿败血症的定义尚未达成共识，目前使用的定义各不相同。新生儿败血症的共识定义将使临床医生、患者和研究人员受益。Sepsis-3 的发表在成人方面的最新进展为如何在新生儿科中制定脓毒症的共识定义和筛查标准提供了指导。我们讨论了新生儿学中脓毒症定义的共同主题和潜在缺点。我们强调对新生儿败血症的共识定义的必要性以及这项任务带来的挑战。