Neonates and development

Question 1

What is failure to thrive?

Answer 1

poor physical growth and development

Question 2

What are the causes of failure to thrive?

Answer 2

Inadequate nutritional intake
Difficulty feeding
Malabsorption
Increased energy requirements
Inability to process nutrition

Question 3

What are the causes of inadequate nutritional intake?

Answer 3

Maternal malabsorption if breastfeeding
Iron deficiency anaemia
Family or parental problems
Neglect
Availability of food (i.e. poverty)

Question 4

What can cause feeding difficulties?

Answer 4

Poor suck, for example due to cerebral palsy
Cleft lip or palate
Genetic conditions with an abnormal facial structure
Pyloric stenosis

Question 5

What can cause malabsorption?

Answer 5

Cystic fibrosis
Coeliac disease
Cows milk intolerance
Chronic diarrhoea
Inflammatory bowel disease

Question 6

What can increase a neonate’s energy requirements?

Answer 6

chronic disease eg. CHD, CF
hyperthyroidism
malignancy
infection eg HIV, immunodeficiency

Question 7

What can cause inability processing nutrients?

Answer 7

inborn errors of metabolism

T1DM

Question 8

What initial investigations should be done in failure to thrive?

Answer 8

urine dipstick for UTI

IgA tTG

Question 9

Which treatment is administered following delivery to prevent haemorrhagic disease of the newborn?

Answer 9

vit k