Acute non-biliary vomiting without abdominal distention associated with elevated serum lactate in term neonates

Abstract

Objective. This retrospective study aimed to analyze the clinical evolution of newborns who presented acute vomiting without abdominal distension and who presented lactacidemia in the rooming-in area or transitional nursery in a tertiary care hospital. Material and methods. An observational, comparative, retrospective, and cross-sectional study was performed from January 1, 2021, to December 22, 2021. Records of newborns with acute vomiting were reviewed, and two groups, Group A with elevated lactate and Group B with normal lactate, were formed. Results. The sample consisted of 62 neonates, of which 41 (66%) had elevated serum lactate (Group A). Logistic regression was performed, finding that time to resolution in hours had a statistical significance of 0.003 and an odds ratio of 1.278 in Group A (18 ± 10) to restart the oral route (p < 0.05). In contrast, Group B had a higher platelet count (p < 0.001). Conclusions. We found elevated serum lactate in 66% of the neonates studied with acute vomiting without abdominal distension in the rooming-in area or transitional nursery, a finding not reported to date in the literature.

Keywords

• Vomiting. Neonate. Lactate.