title: A simple presurgical necrotizing enterocolitis-mortality scoring system.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To assess the relationship between early laboratory parameters, disease severity, type of management (surgical or conservative) and outcome in necrotizing enterocolitis (NEC).
  
  
  METHODS
  Retrospective collection and analysis of data from infants treated in a single tertiary care center (1980 to 2002). Data were collected on disease severity (Bell stage), birth weight (BW), gestational age (GA) and pre-intervention laboratory parameters (leukocyte and platelet counts, hemoglobin, lactate, C-reactive protein).
  
  
  RESULTS
  Data from 128 infants were sufficient for analysis. Factors significantly associated with survival were Bell stage (P<0.05), lactate (P<0.05), BW and GA (P<0.01, P<0.001, respectively). From receiver operating characteristics curves, the highest predictive value resulted from a score with 0 to 8 points combining BW, Bell stage, lactate and platelet count (P<0.001). At a cutoff level of 4.5 sensitivity and specificity for predicting survival were 0.71 and 0.72, respectively.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Some single parameters were associated with poor outcome in NEC. Optimal risk stratification was achieved by combining several parameters in a score.
authors.affiliation: Department of Surgical Pediatrics, Inselspital, University of Berne, Switzerland.
authors.forename: U
authors.initials: U
authors.lastname: Kessler
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Mungnirandr
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Nelle
authors.forename: A F
authors.initials: AF
authors.lastname: Nimmo
authors.forename: Z
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Zachariou
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Berger
mesh_terms: D001724:Birth Weight; D020345:Enterocolitis, Necrotizing / Q000097:blood / Q000145:classification* / Q000401:mortality / Q000628:therapy; D005260:Female; D005865:Gestational Age; D006801:Humans; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D007234:Infant, Premature; D007235:Infant, Premature, Diseases / Q000145:classification / Q000401:mortality / Q000628:therapy; D019344:Lactic Acid / Q000097:blood*; D008297:Male; D012372:ROC Curve; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D012680:Sensitivity and Specificity; D012720:Severity of Illness Index; D016019:Survival Analysis
chemical_list: D019344:Lactic Acid