Prescribing for newborn

Inadequate information is available on how newborn babies and infants handle drugs, due to a large extent to the many ethical, financial and practical issues which discourage drug trials in neonates. The reluctance of drug companies to license neonatal drugs has been highlighted recently in the media. Such reticence is not surprising as the commonly used drugs in neonates have been around for a long time (TABLE 1) and there are few incentives to investigate better alternatives. The neonatal population suffers from being the patient group with the most adverse drug reactions. The goal of the neonatal team has shifted from producing survivors to producing NICU graduates with minimal disability. It is important to know about the drugs being given, when they should be prescribed and in what quantity, in order to optimise health and reduce adverse drug events.