Stool patterns of infants diagnosed with necrotizing enterocolitis

A retrospective study of the stool patterns of 68 infants was conducted. The sample included 34 infants who developed necrotizing enterocolitis (NEC) and 34 infants who did not. The objective was to compare the stool patterns of the two groups. Data regarding number and characteristics of stools; time, types, and methods of feeding; feeding additives; and demographic information were extracted from inpatient medical records. Length of time between the passage of the first stool and initiation of the first feeding in the two groups was compared using the Wilcoxin Rank Sum Test. Findings were statistically significant (p = .008). Numbers of stools were compared using the Fisher Exact Test. Findings were significantly greater for the NEC group. Infants in the NEC group had 26 percent more stools and more than twice as many seedy stools as infants in the non-NEC group.