Water requirement of premature newborn infants.

Two groups of studies related to the water requirement of premature infants are reviewed. The first examined the effects of several environmental factors on insensible water loss (IWL) and oxygen consumption of 20 low-birth-weight infants. Incubator air temperature above the neutral zone increased IWL, as did the use of a radiant heat source instead of a conventional incubator. A plastic heat shield slightly reduced IWL of infants in incubators. The second group of studies examined the effects of excess water intake in premature infants. 170 infants were randomly assigned to receive "low" (average estimated requirement for birth weight and age) or "high" (excess) volume water intake. The high-volume group became dehydrated less often but had a greater incidence of patient ductus arteriosus and necrotizing enterocolitis.