An unusual case of neonatal stridor.

A25-day baby neonate presented with fever and stridor. He had severe respiratory distress at admission. The systemic examination was unremarkable. The roentgenogram of soft tissues of neck revealed widening of superior mediastinum. Computed tomography of neck and upper chest revealed multiple abscesses in the retropharyngeal space, parapharyngeal space, and superior mediastinum. The child improved on aggressive antibiotic treatment protocol. It raises awareness among paediatricians to consider this diagnosis when confronting neonate with fever and stridor. An early diagnosis and aggressive appropriate management will reduce mortality and morbidity associated with this life-threatening condition. A thorough search for a primary source of infection should be done. Neonate should be screened for primary and secondary immunodeficiency disorders before discharge.

Effect of zinc supplementation on growth in very low birth weight infants.

This was a randomized blinded placebo controlled trial undertaken to study the role of zinc supplementation on growth, primarily the linear growth velocity in very low birth weight (VLBW) infants at 3 months corrected age (CA). Out of 134 neonates with birth weight <1500 g, 101 babies were eligible. Due to lack of consent 10 were excluded. The remaining 91 neonates who were comparable for sex, gestational age, birth weight, APGAR and age at enrollment were randomized to receive either 1 ml of zinc sulfate (10 mg elemental zinc) (n = 46) or 1 ml placebo (n = 45) from enrollment to 60 days. The infants in the zinc group had significantly higher linear growth velocity (0.98 ± 0.12 cm week(-1)) compared to a placebo group (0.67 ± 0.15 cm week(-1)) (p < 0.001) at 3 months CA. We concluded that zinc supplementation at 10 mg day(-1) for 60 days in VLBW infants improves their linear growth during infancy.