Monthly Archives: September 2014

Can Paracetamol (acetaminophen) close the ductus arteriosus?

Posted on 29 September 2014 by Keith Barrington

A new publication by Afif El-Khuffash and his colleagues (El-Khuffash A et al. Efficacy of paracetamol on patent ductus arteriosus closure may be dose dependent: evidence from human and murine studies. Pediatr Res. 2014;76(3):238-44) describes a retrospective review of paracetamol use in newborn … Continue reading →

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Probiotics: so what about those ELBW babies?

Posted on 24 September 2014 by Keith Barrington

After a comment to my previous post about probiotics, I wanted to clarify what I said about the ELBW baby, that is, the newborn with a birth weight below 1001 grams. It is true that there are few studies that … Continue reading →

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The Time for a Confirmative Necrotizing Enterocolitis Probiotics Prevention Trial in the Extremely Low Birth Weight Infant in North America Is Well Past

Posted on 23 September 2014 by Keith Barrington

What on earth are these people waiting for? A number of authors from Toronto and elsewhere have written a ridiculous editorial (entitled ‘The Time for a Confirmative Necrotizing Enterocolitis Probiotics Prevention Trial in the Extremely Low Birth Weight Infant in … Continue reading →

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Not neonatology, not directly at least

Posted on 23 September 2014 by Keith Barrington

I am a constant follower of the Science-based medicine blogs.  They have several excellent writers including Mark Crislip who coined a widely quoted phrase about so-called integrative medicine, where science based medicine is mixed with all sorts of woo; acupuncture, … Continue reading →

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Buenos Aires

Posted on 20 September 2014 by Keith Barrington

On my way home from a great, but too short, trip to Buenos Aires. Spoke at a conference there. I had an afternoon off and was able to take a long walking tour, including taking the Avenida de Mayo. Where … Continue reading →

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Probiotics; why not? Too cheap, too easy?

Posted on 20 September 2014 by Keith Barrington

A nice new commentary piece in the Canadian Paediatric Journal (currently behind a paywall, should be free access in 6 months, if you want a copy I am sure that a judicious request could obtain one) asks exactly that question. Richard … Continue reading →

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Dying Later

Posted on 19 September 2014 by Keith Barrington

Several people have noted that the enormous gains in neonatal survival between the 60’s and the 90’s have levelled off. A new publication from our group (not me this time, but Amélie, Rosalie, and Annie, and no, all french-canadian women … Continue reading →

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Does massage help preterm infants?

Posted on 19 September 2014 by Keith Barrington

I think the answer to the question posed in the title of the post is the usual answer: ‘it depends‘. In this case it depends on what you mean by massage, and what you mean by ‘help’. All massage is … Continue reading →

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Spitzer’s rules

Posted on 9 September 2014 by Keith Barrington

Alan Spitzer is a name well known to most neonatologists.  For several reasons: he has been a vital force in neonatology for many years, he is one of those good-natured, but intellectually rigorous physicians that neonatology has been blessed with. … Continue reading →

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How should we feed preterm babies?

Posted on 8 September 2014 by Keith Barrington

Two new interesting articles to address this important question. Corvaglia, L., et al. (2014). “Cardiorespiratory Events with Bolus versus Continuous Enteral Feeding in Healthy Preterm Infants.” J Pediatr. The authors evaluated the effects of bolus vs continuous tube feeding in … Continue reading →

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