Based on the available trials , the evidence does not support the administration of oral immunoglobulin for the prevention of NEC .
There are no r and omized controlled trials of oral IgA alone for the prevention of NEC
BACKGROUND Necrotizing enterocolitis ( NEC ) is the most common emergency involving the gastrointestinal tract occurring in the neonatal period .
There have been published reports that suggest that oral immunoglobulins (Ig)A and IgG produce an immunoprotective effect in the gastrointestinal mucosa .
OBJECTIVES To determine the effect of oral immunoglobulin on the incidence of necrotizing enterocolitis and other complications in preterm or low birth weight ( or both ) neonates .
Breast milk and neonatal necrotising enterocolitis
In a prospect i ve multicentre study on 926 preterm infants formally assigned to their early diet , necrotising enterocolitis developed in 51 ( 5.5 % ) .  Mortality was 26 % in stringently confirmed cases . In exclusively  formula-fed  babies confirmed disease was 6 - 10 times more common than in those fed breast milk alone and 3 times more common than in those who received formula plus breast milk . Pasteurised donor milk seemed to be as protective as raw maternal milk . Among babies born at more than 30 weeks ' gestation confirmed necrotising enterocolitis was rare in those whose diet included breast milk ; it was 20 times more common in those fed formula only . Other risk factors included very low  gestational age , respiratory disease , umbilical artery catheterisation , and polycythaemia . In formula-fed but not breast-milk-fed infants , delayed enteral feeding was associated with a lower frequency of necrotising enterocolitis . With the fall in the use of breast milk in British neonatal units , exclusive formula feeding could account for an estimated 500 extra cases of necrotising enterocolitis each year . About 100 of these infants would die
Based on the available trials , the evidence does not support the administration of oral immunoglobulin for the prevention of NEC .
There are no r and omized controlled trials of oral IgA alone for the prevention of NEC
BACKGROUND Necrotizing enterocolitis ( NEC ) is the most common emergency involving the gastrointestinal tract occurring in the neonatal period .
There have been published reports that suggest that oral immunoglobulins (Ig)A and IgG produce an immunoprotective effect in the gastrointestinal mucosa .
OBJECTIVES To determine the effect of oral immunoglobulin on the incidence of necrotizing enterocolitis and other complications in preterm or low birth weight ( or both ) neonates .