Necrotizing enterocolitis in term infants

Abstract

This article is an overview of NEC in term neonates and also summarizes data from 52 cases within Intermountain Healthcare during the last 11 years. In all 52, NEC occurred among neonates already admitted to a neonatal intensive care unit for some other reason; thus, NEC invariably developed as a complication of treatment, not as a primary diagnosis. The authors speculate that the incidence of term NEC can be reduced by identifying neonatal intensive care unit patients at risk for NEC and applying appropriate-volume human milk feeding programs for these patients.