The Neonatal Microbiome and Necrotizing Enterocolitis

Necrotizing enterocolitis (NEC) is a devastating complication of prematurity. It occurs suddenly, usually during the first month of life, and we don''t know how to prevent it. It is probably more dangerous to premature infants than lung disease today. About one-third of children die and many of the survivors are left with very little intestines. NEC is a disorder that we think might relate to the microbes in the gut. We propose to study this disease intensively, compare cases to controls especially in the days leading up to NEC, and try to determine what differentiates the patients who get this disorder from those who don''t. We might then be able to alter these factors, and prevent this abdominal catastrophe from occurring.