Neonatal Necrotizing Enterocolitis and the Clinical Applications of Bile Acids in Prevention of the Disease

Abstract

Neonatal necrotizing enterocolitis (NEC) is the gastrointestinal disease responsible for the most deaths of premature infants. This honors thesis looks at the role of bile acids in NEC through analyzing bile acid concentration in neonatal stool samples. Subjects were enrolled from the neonatal intensive care unit at the Banner University Medical Center in Tucson, Arizona, their fecal samples were collected and then analyzed using Diazyme Total Bile Acids Assay Kit. There was a statistically significant difference in coefficients of variation between infants with and without NEC, suggesting that bile acid levels could be used clinically to predict the onset of NEC so that changes can be made to prevent the progression of the disease.