الفهرس 
PrematurityOnly 14 pages are availabe for public view
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Abstract
Summary and Conclusions
Preterm infants are live born infants delivered before 37 weeks from
the first day of last menstrual period.
Preterm delivery is a major cause of perinatal mortality and morbidity
and sepsis remains common complication of prematurity.
Other comorbidities include RDS, BPD, persistent pulmonary
hypertension, IVH, ROP as well as NEC are due to the difficulty of
extrauterine adaptation due to immaturity of organ systems.
Omega-3 fatty acids are essential for proper fetal development and
supplementation during pregnancy has also been linked to decrease incidence
of allergies in infants. Omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids, in particular
EPA and DHA have been implicated to have an inhibitory effect on proinflammatory
cytokines, such as tumor necrosis factor-a (TNF-a), interlukin-
1, and interlukin-6. Fetal deficiency of omega-3 may place infant at risk for
allergic diseases and suboptimum neuropsychiatric development.
Aim of our study was to assess the effect of omega-3 fatty acid
supplementation in preterm neonates and their lipid profile.
This study was conducted on 50 preterm neonates.
These preterm neonates were divided into 2 groups:
1- First group: included 25 preterm neonates whose birth weight was
appropriate for gestational age, received omega-3 supplement (DHA 40
mg/kg day) with regular preterm formula within 5 days of the first
enteral feeding for 21 days or until discharge, whatever comes first.
Summary and Conclusions
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2- Second group: included 25 preterm neonates matched to group 1 as
regards gestational age and birth weight, received regular preterm
formula without any supplement.
Both groups were subjected to the following:
1) Complete history taking.
2) General examination.
3) Laboratory investigations:
a- Complete blood count.
b- C-reactive protein.
c- Serum electrolytes (Na, K, Ca).
d- Liver enzymes (ALT and AST).