Till date, no studies are available that have evaluated the incidence of relative adrenal insufficiency in preterm very low birth weight (VLBW) infants with shock. The focus had been on stable preterm and critically ill preterm infants. Given that steroid treatment improves blood pressure and stabilizes cardiovascular status in preterm infants with volume and pressor-resistant hypotension,it becomes essential to examine the incidence of adrenal insufficiency in this cohort (rather than a broad group of critically ill preterm infants). Moreover, there are no studies on adrenal function in Indian neonates.~The purpose of this study is to compare the levels of basal and stimulated (using low dose [1µg/k] ACTH) cortisol levels in preterm (28-34 weeks gestation) very low birth weight (birth weight 750 gm to 1500 gm) infants with shock in the first week of life requiring vasopressor therapy and matched (gestation, birth weight, postnatal age-matched) hemodynamically stable infants ('control group').
The objective of this study is to estimate the prevalence of relative adrenal insufficiency in preterm very low birth weight infants with and without shock.