FAT EXCRETION OF PREMATURE INFANTS

Abstract

In a previous study of the nitrogen metabolism of premature infants,1attention was called to the defective ability of such infants to absorb fat. This defect had been noted earlier by Rubner and Langstein,2by Muhl3and by Holt and his co-workers4and was considered by Ylppo5to be a factor contributing to the tendency for rickets to develop in premature infants. In a subsequent study of the energy exchange of premature infants,6the loss of calories in the feces was found to be two to three times that reported for full term infants. It was suggested that the use for premature infants of a feeding mixture from which half the fat had been removed, such as the one described by Powers,7might permit more efficient absorption of food. In the present paper data from a total of 79 observations on 38 premature