EARLY OR LATE PARENTERAL-NUTRITION FOR THE SICK PRETERM INFANT

No one doubts that good nutrition is an important component of neonata l intensive care, nor that this can only be accomplished by the use of intravenous fat. With regard to the effects of nutrition on bronchopu lmonary dysplasia, however, we are facing a dilemma. On the one hand t here is the suggestion that inadequate nutrition increases the severit y of bronchopulmonary dysplasia and on the other that the use of intra venous fat predisposes to it. In an attempt to narrow the area of unce rtainty we randomly allocated 129 infants of less than 1750 g birth we ight to receive either early or late lipid containing parenteral nutri tion. The median duration of ventilation support in the 'early' group was 8.5 days and in the 'late' group eight days; this was not signific antly different.