Objective To assess the incidence and severity of acute kidney injury (AKI) and evaluate risk factors that predict AKI in asphyxiated infants receiving therapeutic hypothermia.Study Design Infants ≥36 weeks' gestation diagnosed with moderate-to-severe perinatal asphyxia and received therapeutic hypothermia were reviewed retrospectively (n = 166). Modified Acute Kidney Injury Network criteria were used to diagnose AKI. The results of infants with AKI were compared with the infants who did not develop AKI.Results AKI developed in 49 (29.5%) infants, of whom 22 had stage I, 13 had stage II, and 14 had stage III AKI. The overall mortality rate was 15.7% and was significantly higher in infants with AKI when compared with infants without AKI (41 vs. 5%; p < 0.001). Asystole at birth (p = 0.044), placental abruption (p = 0.041), outborn status (p = 0.041), need for vasopressor support (p = 0.031), increased bleeding tendency (p = 0.031), initial lactate level (p = 0.015), and 12-hour lactate level (p = 0.029) were independent risk factors for the development of AKI. Receiver operating characteristic curve analysis demonstrated a good predictive value for initial lactate level (>15 mmol/L), with 69% sensitivity (95% CI: 55–82) and 82% specificity (95% CI: 74–89), and for 12-hour lactate level (>6 mmol/L), with 83.7% sensitivity (95% CI: 70–93) and 73.5% specificity (95% CI: 64.5–81), to predict AKI.Conclusion AKI is still a common complication of perinatal asphyxia despite treatment with therapeutic hypothermia. Identification of risk factors associated with the development of AKI in asphyxiated infants would be potentially beneficial to reduce morbidity and mortality. Besides perinatal risk factors, initial and 12-hour lactate concentrations can be used for the early prediction of AKI.

Objective: To determine the effect of two different feeding strategies on time to achieve full enteral feeding and the incidence of feeding intolerance in preterm infants with birth weight ≤1250 g. Methods: A prospective randomized trial (NCT02913677) conducted at a tertiary level neonatal intensive care unit. Preterm infants with birth weight ≤1250 g were randomly allocated to either prolonged minimal enteral nutrition (MEN) in which feed volumes were not increased for five days or early feeding advancement groups in which feed volumes were advanced by 20–25 ml/kg/d until 150 ml/kg/d feed volume was achieved. The primary outcomes were time to reach full enteral feeding sustained for 72 h and incidence of feeding intolerance. Results: A total of 199 infants (99 in prolonged MEN and 100 in early feeding advancement groups) were involved in the study. No statistically significant differences were observed in time to achieve full enteral feeding and feeding intolerance. Daily weight gain (19 versus 16 g; p < .001) was significantly higher in prolonged MEN group. There were no significant differences in weight percentiles and z-scores at discharge. Duration of hospitalization was comparable between the groups. The overall incidence of late onset sepsis and culture proven sepsis was similar in both groups (p = .92 and p = .22, respectively). Incidence of necrotizing enterocolitis (NEC) was 5% in early feeding advancement group, whereas no case of NEC was observed in prolonged MEN group (p = .06). Conclusions: Prolonged MEN is not associated with a delay in time to achieve full enteral feedings. It may even provide an advantage for development of NEC in extremely low birth weight infants. Trial registration: Clinical Trials.gov: NCT02913677.

Objective Endotracheal intubation is a frequent procedure performed in neonates with respiratory distress. Clinicians use different methods to estimate the intubation insertion depth, but, unfortunately, the improper insertion results are very high. In this study, we aimed to compare the two different methods (Tochen's formula = weight in kilograms + 6 cm; and nasal septum–tragus length [NTL] + 1 cm) used to determine the endotracheal tube (ETT) insertion depth.Study Design Infants who had intubation indications were enrolled in this study. The intubation tube was fixed using the Tochen formula (Tochen group) or the NTL + 1 cm formula (NTL group). After intubation, the chest radiograph was evaluated (above T1, proper place, and below T2).Results A total of 167 infants (22–42 weeks of gestational age) were included in the study. The proper tube placement rate in both groups was similar (32.4 vs. 30.4% for infants < 34 weeks of gestational age and 56.8 vs. 45.0% in infants > 34 weeks of gestational age). The ETT was frequently placed below T2 at a higher rate in infants with a gestational age of <34 weeks, especially in the NTL group (46% in the Tochen group and 60.7% in the NTL group).Conclusion The NTL + 1 cm formula led to a higher rate of ETT placement below T2, especially in infants with a birth weight of <1,500 g. Therefore, more studies are needed to determine the optimal ETT insertion depth.

Background: Several retrospective studies have reported an increase in necrotizing enterocolitis (NEC) during the 48 hours following red blood cell (RBC) transfusion. Whether withholding enteral feeding during transfusion decreases the risk of transfusion-associated acute gut injury (TRAGI) in preterm infants is unclear. Study design and methods: In this pilot study, 112 preterm infants with gestational age ≤ 32 weeks and/or birth weight ≤ 1500 grams were randomly assigned to withholding (NPO) or continuance of feeding (FED) during RBC transfusion. Primary outcome measure was development of NEC (stage ≥ 2) within 72 hours of a transfusion and the change in abdominal circumference. Results: One hundred fifty-four transfusion episodes (74 NPO and 80 FED) were analyzed. Demographic characteristics were found to be similar in both groups. There was no difference in rates of NEC (0 versus 3.4%; p = 0.49) between the NPO and FED groups. The incidence of feeding intolerance was higher in the FED group however it was statistically insignificant (1.9 versus 6.8%, p = 0.36). Abdominal circumference remained similar in both groups in all three consecutive days following transfusion (p > 0.05). Conclusion: This pilot study does not support withholding feedings during transfusion but is not adequately powered to test the hypothesis that NPO decreases NEC rates. Adequately powered well designed multicenter trials are still required.