Objectives
Given the known risk factors for NEC, we hypothesized that metabolic dysfunction reflected in routinely collected newborn screening data would be associated with NEC in an at risk population.
Study Design
We conducted a retrospective cohort study using discharge records for all preterm neonatal intensive care unit admissions in California from 2005 to 2009. Infants with linked state newborn screening results were included. A model-development cohort of 94,110 preterm births from 2005 to 2008 was used to develop a risk-stratification model that was then applied to a validation cohort of 22,992 births from 2009.
Results
Fourteen acylcarnitines and acylcarnitine ratios were associated with increased risk of developing NEC. Each log unit increase in C5 and FC/(C16+18:1) was associated with a 78% and a 76% increased risk for developing NEC, respectively (OR 1.78, 95% CI 1.53 – 2.02, and OR 1.76, 95% CI 1.51 – 2.06). Six acylcarnitines, along with birth weight and total parenteral nutrition, were able to identify 89.8% of newborns with NEC in the model-development cohort (AUC=0.898, 95% confidence interval (CI) 0.889 – 0.907) and 90.8% of the newborns with NEC in the validation cohort (AUC=0.908, 95% CI 0.901 – 0.930).
Conclusions
These findings demonstrate that abnormal fatty acid metabolism is associated with prematurity and the development of NEC. Metabolic profiling through newborn screening may serve as an objective biologic surrogate of risk for the development of disease and thus facilitate disease prevention strategies.