ArticlePediatric research2023
Current pain management practices for preterm infants with necrotizing enterocolitis: a European survey.
Article in Pediatric research, 2023. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 8 papers.
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Who cites it
8 citing papers in PubMed, 15 citations in OpenAlex.
- Necrotizing enterocolitis.Nature reviews. Disease primers · 2026Review
- Pharmacological therapy of neonatal analgosedation: current status, dilemmas, and perspectives.Frontiers in pediatrics · 2026Review
- Pain management in preterm infants with necrotizing enterocolitis: an international expert consensus statement.European journal of pediatrics · 2025Article
- Visceral Pain in Preterm Infants with Necrotizing Enterocolitis: Underlying Mechanisms and Implications for Treatment.Paediatric drugs · 2025Review
- Neonatal Pain Management: Is There An Endocrinal Response?Endocrine, metabolic & immune disorders drug targets · 2025Review
- Impact of sociodemographic status of countries on neonatal analgosedation management.Pediatric research · 2024Article
- Neonatal Necrotizing Enterocolitis: An Update on Pathophysiology, Treatment, and Prevention.Paediatric drugs · 2024Review
- Maturation of Paracetamol Elimination Routes in Preterm Neonates Born Below 32 Weeks of Gestation.Pharmaceutical research · 2023Article
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
11 authors at 4 institutions in 4 countries.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundNecrotizing enterocolitis (NEC) is a highly painful intestinal complication in preterm infants that requires adequate pain management to prevent short- and long-term effects of neonatal pain. There is a lack of international guidelines for pain management in NEC patients. Therefore, this study aims to describe current pain management for NEC patients in European neonatal intensive care units (NICUs).
methodsAn online survey was designed and conducted to assess current practices in pain management for NEC patients in European NICUs. The survey was distributed via neonatal societies, digital platforms, and professional contacts.
resultsOut of the 259 responding unique European NICUs from 36 countries, 61% had a standard protocol for analgesic therapy, 73% assessed pain during NEC, and 92% treated NEC patients with intravenous analgosedatives. There was strong heterogeneity in the used pain scales and initial analgesic therapy, which mainly included acetaminophen (70%), fentanyl (56%), and/or morphine (49%). A third of NICU representatives considered their pain assessment adequate, and half considered their analgesic therapy adequate for NEC patients.
conclusionsVarious pain scales and analgesics are used to treat NEC patients in European NICUs. Our results provide the first step towards an international guideline to improve pain management for NEC patients. IMPACT: This study provides an overview of current pain management practices for infants with necrotizing enterocolitis (NEC) in European neonatal intensive care units. Choice of pain assessment tools, analgosedatives, and dosages vary considerably among NICUs and countries. A third of NICU representatives were satisfied with their current pain assessment practices and half of NICU representatives with their analgesic therapy practices in NEC patients in their NICU. The results of this survey may provide a first step towards developing a European pain management consensus guideline for patients with NEC.
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