Abstract
Necrotizing enterocolitis (NEC) is one of the most common and lethal gastrointestinal diseases in preterm infants. Early recognition of infants in need for surgical intervention might enable early intervention. In this multicenter case-control study, performed in nine neonatal intensive care units, preterm born infants (< 30 weeks of gestation) diagnosed with NEC (stage ≥ IIA) between October 2014 and August 2017 were divided into two groups: (1) medical (conservative treatment) and (2) surgical NEC (sNEC). Perinatal, clinical, and laboratory parameters were collected daily up to clinical onset of NEC. Univariate and multivariate logistic regression analyses were applied to identify potential predictors for sNEC. In total, 73 preterm infants with NEC (41 surgical and 32 medical NEC) were included. A low gestational age (p value, adjusted odds ratio [95%CI]; 0.001, 0.91 [0.86–0.96]), no maternal corticosteroid administration (0.025, 0.19 [0.04–0.82]), early onset of NEC (0.003, 0.85 [0.77–0.95]), low serum bicarbonate (0.009, 0.85 [0.76–0.96]), and a hemodynamically significant patent ductus arteriosus for which ibuprofen was administered (0.003, 7.60 [2.03–28.47]) were identified as independent risk factors for sNEC.Conclusions: Our findings may support the clinician to identify infants with increased risk for sNEC, which may facilitate early decisive management and consequently could result in improved prognosis.What is Known:• In 27–52% of the infants with NEC, a surgical intervention is indicated during its disease course.• Absolute indication for surgical intervention is bowel perforation, whereas fixed bowel loop or clinical deterioration highly suggestive of bowel perforation or necrosi, is a relative indication.What is New:• Lower gestational age, early clinical onset, and no maternal corticosteroids administration are predictors for surgical NEC.• Low serum bicarbonate in the 3 days prior clinical onset and patent ductus arteriosus for which ibuprofen was administered predict surgical NEC.
Highlights
Necrotizing enterocolitis (NEC) is one of the most common gastrointestinal diseases in preterm infants, affecting approximately 7% of very low birth weight infants (VLBW, < 1500 g) and is associated with high mortality rates of 20–30% [1]
1182 preterm infants were included during the inclusion period, of whom 73 preterm infants (6%) developed NEC stage ≥ IIA and were included for further analyses
Mortality rate in the first 120 days of life was significantly higher in the surgical NEC (sNEC) group, with an odds ratio of 16.76 [95%CI 4.35–64.50], and the median age at death was 16 days in the sNEC group compared to 10 days in the medical group
Summary
Necrotizing enterocolitis (NEC) is one of the most common gastrointestinal diseases in preterm infants, affecting approximately 7% of very low birth weight infants (VLBW, < 1500 g) and is associated with high mortality rates of 20–30% [1]. The diagnosis of NEC is based on a combination of clinical, radiographic, and laboratory parameters. Absolute indication for surgical intervention is bowel perforation (confirmed by radiographic signs of free gas in the abdomen), whereas fixed bowel loop or clinical deterioration highly suggestive of bowel perforation or necrosis is considered a relative indication [6, 7]. This is mostly based on a combination of radiographic signs and expert opinion, but clinically relevant predictive factors are still limited at best. Apgar score at 1 min, need of inotropic treatment, mean blood pressure, and late-onset sepsis are demonstrated predictors for mortality in surgical NEC [10]
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