Diarrhea represents a major condition responsible for pediatric mortality worldwide. The onset of neonatal diarrhea may rapidly lead to life threatening dehydration and malnutrition. Clinical and epidemiologic studies defining severity and etiology are needed in order to improve diagnostic and therapeutic approaches for the management of neonatal diarrhea.
A research team from Italy did a retrospective, nationwide study involving 5801 subjects observed in neonatal intensive care units during 3 years. The results of the investigation showed that, in particular setting, diarrhea is a relatively uncommon but insidious condition underlying a broad spectrum of illnesses. The list of diseases and mechanisms responsible for diarrhea in neonates is large and the number of possible etiologies is higher compared with older pediatric patients. Thus, early diagnosis and timely treatment are both crucial in the management of diarrhea in neonates. Their study will be published on June 7, 2010 in the World Journal of Gastroenterology.
This is the first systematic study describing diarrhea in patients hospitalized in the neonatal intensive care unit in an industrialized country and outside outbreak conditions. This study will help neonatologists to become more confidential with all the possible etiologies of diarrhea in neonates in order to recognize and correctly manage rare chronic cases who need the assistance of a specialized team dedicated to their long-term treatment. Specific guidelines for the management of diarrheal disorders in neonates are advocated.
This research opens the way to new investigations in the area of diarrheal diseases with neonatal onset. The results could be of importance for other experts in the field of infectious diseases, nutrition, cell biology, histology and genetics.
Reference: Passariello A, Terrin G, Baldassarre ME, De Curtis M, Paludetto R, Berni Canani R. Diarrhea in neonatal intensive care unit. World J Gastroenterol 2010; 16(21): 2664-2668 http://www.wjgnet.com/1007-9327/full/v16/i21/2664.htm
Correspondence to: Roberto Berni Canani, MD, PhD, Department of Pediatrics, University of Naples “Federico II”, Via S. Pansini, 5, Naples, 80131, Italy. [email protected] Telephone: +39-81-7462680 Fax: +39-81-7462680
About World Journal of Gastroenterology
World Journal of Gastroenterology (WJG), a leading international journal in gastroenterology and hepatology, has established a reputation for publishing first class research on esophageal cancer, gastric cancer, liver cancer, viral hepatitis, colorectal cancer, and H pylori infection and provides a forum for both clinicians and scientists. WJG has been indexed and abstracted in Current Contents/Clinical Medicine, Science Citation Index Expanded (also known as SciSearch) and Journal Citation Reports/Science Edition, Index Medicus, MEDLINE and PubMed, Chemical Abstracts, EMBASE/Excerpta Medica, Abstracts Journals, Nature Clinical Practice Gastroenterology and Hepatology, CAB Abstracts and Global Health. ISI JCR 2008 IF: 2.081. WJG is a weekly journal published by WJG Press. The publication dates are the 7th, 14th, 21st, and 28th day of every month. WJG is supported by The National Natural Science Foundation of China, No. 30224801 and No. 30424812, and was founded with the name of China National Journal of New Gastroenterology on October 1, 1995, and renamed WJG on January 25, 1998.