Browsing by Author "Alshaikh, Belal"

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    Association between SMOFlipid and impaired brain development on term-equivalent age brain magnetic resonance imaging in very preterm infants
    (2024-10-29) Al-Mouqdad, Mountasser M.; Alshaikh, Belal; Sumaily, Haider H.; Alodhaidan, Nabeel A.; AlMahmoud, Latifah; Almotiri, Ameen A.; Alkhourmi, Mousa A.; Abounassif, Mazen M.; Beh, Ahmed F.; Alawad, Mashael A.; Albraiki, Amani A.; Alqarni, Aziza A.; Al-Anazi, Maha R.; Basodan, Nadia A.; Assiri, Fuddah M.; Asfour, Suzan S.
    Abstract Soybean oil, medium-chain triglycerides, olive oil, and fish oil (SMOFlipid) is used without evidence of benefits. We investigated the relationship between lipid emulsions and brain injury in term-equivalent age magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) in 148 very preterm infants with a birth weight of < 1500 g at ≤ 32 gestational weeks in a neonatal intensive care unit. Infants who received soybean-based lipid emulsions between January 2015 and December 2018 were compared with those who received SMOFlipids between January 2019 and December 2022. A negative binomial generalized linear model was applied for bivariate analysis. Modified log-Poisson regression with generalized linear models and a robust variance estimator (Huber–White) were applied to adjust for potential confounders. The Kidokoro score was used to determine if lipid emulsion type would affect brain morphology and growth at term-equivalent age. Eighty-six (58.9%) received SMOFlipid. SMOFlipid was associated with lower focal signal abnormality, myelination delay, increased extracerebral space, and cerebellar volume reduction (P = 0.02, P = 0.007, P = 0.01, P = 0.02, respectively). SMOFlipidis are associated with brain insult, especially in white matter, cortical gray matter, and the cerebellum. Well-designed studies are needed to investigate the effect of lipid emulsions on the central nervous system.
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    Coagulase-negative Staphylococcus Sepsis in Preterm Infants and Long Term Neurodevelopmental Outcome
    (2013-05-27) Alshaikh, Belal; Sauve, Reginald
    Objective: To examine the effect of Coagulase-negative Staphylococcus (CoNS) sepsis in preterm infants on the neonatal and neurodevelopmental outcomes at 36 months corrected age (CA). Design: A retrospective cohort study. Subjects: All preterm infants with gestational age ≤ 28 weeks. Results: A total of 105 eligible infants were exposed to CoNS sepsis between 1995 and 2008. Infants exposed to CoNS sepsis were less mature (25.9 ± 1.7 vs. 26.2 ± 1.4, p=0.04), had increased risk of retinopathy of prematurity (ROP) (adjusted RR 1.32; 95% CI 1.11 – 1.54), and were more likely to stay longer in the neonatal intensive care unit. Multivariable logistic regression analysis revealed CoNS sepsis is an independent predictor for cognitive delay (adjusted RR 1.98; 95% CI 1.01 – 3.63). Conclusions: CoNS sepsis in preterm infants is associated with increased risk for ROP in the neonatal period and for cognitive delay at 36 months CA.
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    The Gut Microbiome of Premature Infants: An Ecological Analysis of a Probiotic Intervention Study
    (2021-10) Samara, Jumana; Arrieta, Marie Claire; McCoy, Kathy; Lacaze-Masmonteil, Thierry; Alshaikh, Belal
    Preterm infants are a unique population of patients, as prematurity is the leading cause of death in children under 5 years of age, and survivors are extremely challenged during their early and future life 1. Due to prematurity on every system, challenges faced by preterm infant early and later in life include, and are not limited to respiratory, digestive, immune, neurological, and growth-related conditions that can lead to life threatening complications and an increased risk to several diseases later in life 2-4. Probiotic strains are increasingly used in preterm infants due to their potential to reduce mortality and morbidities in this population. However, due to reduced evidence on safety and efficacy, these are not routinely used in extremely premature infants. The infant gut undergoes important developmental stages that are dependent upon the colonization with microorganism, beginning at birth 5. While it is well established that the premature gut microbiome exhibits profound alterations, the ecological patterns of microbial assembly and succession in preterm infants remained understudied and have only included bacteria. Moreover, it is not well understood how these processes are impacted by probiotics. The goal of my MSc research is to determine if probiotics use changes gut colonization patterns of the gut microbiome during and after treatment, and if the probiotic strains can persist in the gut of extremely premature infants. We showed a successful colonization of probiotics strains in the gut of extremely low birth weight preterm infants in addition to significant ecological changes of bacterial and fungal microbiome during the probiotic’s consumption and up to 6 months after treatment cessation. Our results confirmed that early life colonization with healthy bacteria beneficially impacts the future microbiome in extremely preterm infants.