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 WASHINGTON (AP) - It's one of the grimmest threats to premature babies: Their immature intestines break down. They can't be fed. In the worst cases, holes in the bowel let bacteria leak into the blood — and kill.
This mysterious disorder is expected to soon overtake lung disease as the leading killer of preterm infants, and researchers are struggling to figure out why it strikes and develop the first real protection.
"We're keeping the most fragile and vulnerable babies alive longer" with better respiratory care, but "at a price," laments Dr. David Hackam of Children's Hospital of Pittsburgh.
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