Antenatal Antibiotic Exposure in Preterm Infants with Necrotizing Enterocolitis

Objective: To determine whether an association exists between antenatal antibiotic exposure and incidence of necrotizing enterocolitis (NEC) in low birth weight infants.

Study Design: A retrospective case-control study was performed on all infants with a diagnosis of NEC born at our institition between 1988 and 2006. Medical histories of all infants with a diagnosis of NEC ≥Bell's stage IIA and matched controls without NEC were reviewed. Maternal and neonatal characteristics were compared using the Mantel-Haenszel chi-square procedure, and logistic regression models were constructed to account for confounding.

Result: Clinical data for 97 matched pairs were analyzed. The adjusted odds ratio (OR) for antenatal exposure to ampicillin was significantly greater for infants who developed NEC (OR 2.3, 95% confidence interval 1.1, 4.8, P=0.003) than for control infants.

Conclusion: Infants who developed NEC were more likely to have a history of in utero exposure to ampicillin in the immediate antepartum period than infants who did not develop NEC.