Intestinal location of necrotizing enterocolitis among infants with congenital heart disease

Objective:to determine whether differences exist in the location of necrotizing enterocolitis (nec) in infants with congenital heart disease (chd) versus those without chd.study design:retrospective cohort study utilizing 11 years of patient data. inclusion criterion was surgical exploration for nec. presence or absence of chd was determined. surgical and/or pathology reports were reviewed to identify the location of nec. data were analyzed by t-tests and χ2 analyses.result:one hundred and sixty-seven patients met the inclusion criteria. chd infants had a higher percentage of mortality. there was no difference in the location of nec between non-chd and chd patients, with the predominant location being the small intestine in both. in addition, there was no difference in the location of nec between preterm non-chd patients and full-term chd patients with the small intestine again being the primary site.conclusion:despite differences in gestational age between non-chd and chd patients, the location of nec in these infants did not differ.