Alterations in gastrointestinal microflora during antimicrobial therapy for necrotizing enterocolitis.

Changes in the gastrointestinal microflora were noted in 22 infants during combined topical and parenteral antimicrobial therapy for necrotizing enterocolitis (NEC). Gastric and fecal cultures obtained during therapy showed significantly decreased Gram-negative aerobic organisms, most of which were Enterobacteriaceae, when compared with pretreatment cultures. Members of this bacterial family have been implicated in the pathogenesis of NEC in many reports. The data presented here show that the number of organisms retrieved can be reduced with this method of antimicrobial therapy.