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Dilemmas in feeding infants with intestinal failure: a neonatologist’s perspective

Journal of Perinatology volume 43, pages 114–119 (2023)Cite this article

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Abstract

Intestinal failure in neonatal and pediatric populations can be debilitating for patients and difficult to manage for clinicians. Management strategies include referral to an intestinal rehabilitation center, small volume trophic feeds to stimulate the intestine with cautious advancement of enteral nutrition using a standardized and evidence-based feeding protocol, and supplemental parenteral nutrition to optimize an infant’s growth and nutrition. In this review, we discuss the causes of intestinal failure, parenteral nutrition strategies, enteral feeding initiation and advancement protocols, as well as the challenges in feeding an infant with intestinal failure.

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Fig. 1: High and low risk groups of infants at risk for Intestinal Failure (IF) and Morbidities.

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Data sharing is not applicable to this manuscript as no new data were generated or analyzed in this study.

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Acknowledgements

We would like to thank Dr. Murali Premkumar and Laura Gollins for their contributions to the NICU Intestinal Rehabilitation Guidelines at Texas Children’s Hospital, Baylor College of Medicine.

Funding

ABH and MG are supported by the National Institutes of Health (NIH) grant R01DK124614, and MG is also supported by NIH grants R01DK118568 and R01HD105301. None of the funding sources had any role in this manuscript.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Division of Neonatology, Texas Children’s Hospital, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX, 77030, USA

    Amy B. Hair

  2. Division of Neonatal-Perinatal Medicine, Department of Pediatrics, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC, 27599, USA

    Misty Good

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  1. Amy B. Hair
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ABH and MG wrote the initial and final drafts of the manuscript, approved the final published version and are accountable for all aspects of the manuscript.

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Correspondence to Misty Good.

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Hair, A.B., Good, M. Dilemmas in feeding infants with intestinal failure: a neonatologist’s perspective. J Perinatol 43, 114–119 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41372-022-01504-4

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