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Metabolic rate and energy balance in infants with bronchopulmonary dysplasia
T F Yeh1, D A McClenan, O A Ajayi
1Division of Neonatology, Cook County Children's Hospital, Chicago, IL 60612.
Insights
Infants with bronchopulmonary dysplasia (BPD) show poor weight gain due to low caloric intake and high energy expenditure. Their growth is impaired, suggesting altered tissue composition with increased water content.
Area of Science:
- Pediatrics
- Neonatology
- Respiratory Medicine
Background:
- Bronchopulmonary dysplasia (BPD) is a chronic lung disease in premature infants.
- BPD affects infant energy metabolism and growth.
- Understanding energy use in BPD is crucial for management.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate energy expenditure and growth in infants with severe BPD.
- To compare metabolic rates and energy balance between BPD and control infants.
- To identify factors contributing to poor growth in BPD.
Main Methods:
- Studied metabolic rate and energy balance in five infants with stage III-IV BPD and five controls.
- Measured energy intake, energy expenditure, and weight gain.
- Analyzed urine output and output/intake ratio.
Main Results:
- Infants with BPD had significantly lower energy intake and higher energy expenditure compared to controls.
- Weight gain and energy cost of growth were significantly reduced in BPD infants.
- BPD infants showed lower urine output and output/intake ratio.
Conclusions:
- Infants with BPD absorb calories effectively but have poor weight gain due to altered energy balance.
- High energy expenditure and low intake in BPD lead to impaired growth.
- Reduced energy cost of growth suggests increased tissue water content in BPD infants.
Abstract:
To determine energy use and growth of infants with bronchopulmonary dysplasia (BPD), we studied metabolic rate and energy balance in five infants with stage III-IV BPD (birth weight 1309 +/- 530 gm, gestational age 32 +/- 3 weeks, postnatal age 59.8 +/- 14.2 days) and in five control infants (birth weight 1540 +/- 213 gm, gestational age 33 +/- 2 weeks, postnatal age 42.0 +/- 4.2 days). Infants with BPD had significantly lower energy intake but higher energy expenditure than did control infants. Weight gain and energy cost of growth were significantly less in BPD infants than in control infants, as were urine output and output/intake ratio. We conclude that infants with BPD (1) absorbed caloric intake as well as did normal control infants, (2) had low energy intake and high energy expenditure, resulting in poor weight gain, and (3) had low energy cost of growth, suggesting an alteration in composition of tissue gain, with relatively high water content.