Efficacy of antenatal magnesium sulfate in the prevention of necrotizing enterocolitis: A randomized case-control study in preterm neonates.

Objective: To assess the efficacy of administering antenatal magnesium sulfate in reducing the occurrence of necrotizing enterocolitis in preterm infants. Study Design: Randomized Case-control study. Setting: Hameed Latif Hospital Lahore. Period: August 2023- February 2024. Methods: The study including 80 preterm neonates (26 to 32 weeks gestation) was conducted at Neonatology & Gynaecology Unit Hameed Latif Hospital, Lahore. These neonates were divided into two groups: Group A included infants whose mothers were given magnesium sulfate before preterm birth, while Group B comprised of infants whose mothers did not receive magnesium sulfate. The primary outcome was the incidence of NEC in infants born to mothers exposed to magnesium sulfate, with secondary outcomes covering other neonatal morbidities and maternal side effects. Data analysis utilized SPSS Statistics software version 24, employing t-tests and multivariate logistic regression to evaluate the association between antenatal magnesium sulfate exposure and NEC incidence, considering a significant p-value of ≤ 0.05. Results: The overall NEC incidence was 5%(n=2). No NEC cases were reported in the control group. The difference in neonatal outcomes between both groups was statistically insignificant (p>0.05). Conclusion: Administering antenatal magnesium sulfate has no effect in decreasing the incidence of NEC in preterm infants.