The energy requirements of critically ill newborns in the early neonatal period are not established. We hypothesized that the total energy expenditure(TEE) of critically ill newborns is greater than that of normal, healthy, term newborns. TEE was measured in critically ill and normal newborns over a 7d period using the doubly labeled water method (DLW). At study entry, critically ill infants (n=6) had respiratory disease requiring high frequency oscillatory ventilation (used as rescue therapy at our institution) and a respiratory index score (RIS; Paw x%FiO2) of ≥ 2.5. Normal newborns (n=4) were healthy and without medical complications. Infants received an enteral dose of2 H218O; urine was collected daily over one week. Samples were analyzed using Isotope Ratio Mass Spectrometry. Total body water (TBW) at the beginning and end of the study and TEE were then determined. Results are shown below as mean (SD), *p≤ 0.05.

Summary and Conclusions: Infants did not vary significantly in gestation or weight. The%TBW was significantly higher in ill compared with well infants. Although TEE was 24% lower in ill vs. well infants, this difference was not statistically significant (p=0.4). Contrary to our hypothesis, TEE in critically ill newborns in early postnatal life does not appear to be higher than that of normal newborns. Table

Table 1 No caption available.
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