BACKGROUND Decreased intestinal perfusion may contribute to the development of necrotizing enterocolitis (NEC). Vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) is an angiogenic protein necessary for the development and maintenance of capillary networks. Whether VEGF is dysregulated in NEC remains unknown. OBJECTIVES The objective of this study was to determine whether intestinal VEGF expression is ...

BACKGROUND The risk factors for necrotizing enterocolitis (NEC) are well known, but the factors involved in the different NEC presentations remain unclear. OBJECTIVES We hypothesized that digestive dysfunction and intestinal inflammation are mainly affected by severe NEC lesions. METHODS In 48 preterm pigs, the association between the macroscopic NEC score (range 1-6) and the expression of ...

OBJECTIVE Candida and coagulase-negative staphylococci are emerging pathogens associated with focal intestinal perforation (FIP) and necrotizing enterocolitis (NEC) in neonates. The objective of this study was to determine whether there are significant differences in the predominant pathogens in culture-positive cases of peritonitis associated with FIP compared with NEC in neonates. METHODS A...

BACKGROUND Infants who survive advanced necrotizing enterocolitis (NEC) at the time of birth are at increased risk of having poor long term physiological and neurodevelopmental growth. The economic implications of the long term morbidity in these children have not been studied to date. This paper compares the long term healthcare costs beyond the initial hospitalization period incurred by medic...

Abstract The International Pediatric and Congenital Cardiac Code (IPCCC) states that visceral heterotaxy is defined as “a congenital malformation in which the internal thoraco-abdominal organs demonstrate abnormal arrangement across left-right axis of body. By convention, cardiology, syndrome does not include patients with complete mirror-imaged along also known “total mirror imagery” or “situs...

Necrotising enterocolitis (NEC) is an uncommon, but devastating intestinal inflammatory disease that predominantly affects preterm infants. NEC is sometimes dubbed the spectre of neonatal intensive care units, as its onset is insidiously non-specific, and once the disease manifests, the damage inflicted on the baby's intestine is already disastrous. Subsequent sepsis and multi-organ failure ent...

Background: Eosinophils infiltrate intestinal tissue during necrotizing enterocolitis (NEC) and adult bowel diseases. We theorized that epithelial damage causes eosinophilic activation and recruitment at NEC onset. Objective: We studied the relationship between persistent blood eosinophilia and medical or surgical complications during NEC. Methods: NEC cases and controls at MU Children’s Hospit...

Enterohepatic helicobacter species (EHS) infect the intestinal tract and biliary tree, triggering intestinal and hepatic disorders. Helicobacter hepaticus, the prototypic murine EHS, is also associated with inflammation. Necrotizing enterocolitis (NEC) is a devastating disease of premature infants. The cause of NEC is not fully understood, but anomalies of bacterial colonization (dysbiosis) are...