title: Increased fecal calprotectin in preterm infants with necrotizing enterocolitis.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Necrotizing entrocolitis (NEC) remains a potentially fatal disease in premature infants despite the recent advances in neonatal care. It is a disease with a multifactorial etiology leading to the one common final pathway of necrosis and inflammmation of the neonatal intestine.
  
  
  METHODS
  Calprotectin is a calcium and zinc-binding protein in human neutrophils. Its concentration rises in various organic bowel diseases in adults and is resistant to degradation and has been proposed as a useful, simple, and rapid diagnostic method of inflammatory bowel disease that shows gastrointestinal inflammation in children and adults.
  
  
  RESULTS
  We found that infants with necrotizing enterocolitis had increased fecal calprotectin concentrations, and there was a correlation between calprotectin concentrations and severity of NEC.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  We concluded that fecal calprotectin is a useful marker for diagnosis and severity of NEC in preterm infants.
authors.affiliation: Department ofPediatrics, GATA Medical Faculty, Istanbul, Turkey.
authors.forename: Gokhan
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Aydemir
authors.forename: Ferhat
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Cekmez
authors.forename: I Asya
authors.initials: IA
authors.lastname: Tanju
authors.forename: Fuat Emre
authors.initials: FE
authors.lastname: Canpolat
authors.forename: F Alparslan
authors.initials: FA
authors.lastname: Genc
authors.forename: Sukran
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Yildirim
authors.forename: Turan
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Tunc
authors.forename: S Umit
authors.initials: SU
authors.lastname: Sarici
mesh_terms: D020345:Enterocolitis, Necrotizing / Q000378:metabolism*; D005243:Feces; D006801:Humans; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D007234:Infant, Premature; D039841:Leukocyte L1 Antigen Complex / Q000378:metabolism*
chemical_list: D039841:Leukocyte L1 Antigen Complex