Oct 31 (Reuters) - Abbott and Reckitt

unit Mead Johnson are not responsible for a young boy's

debilitating intestinal disease, a jury found on Thursday in a

lawsuit accusing them of failing to warn of their premature baby

formulas' risks, a victory for the two companies following large

losses in similar trials.

The verdict followed a five-week trial in St. Louis,

Missouri state court in which lawyers for plaintiff Kaine

Whitfield had urged jurors to award more than $6.2 billion.

The lawsuit, brought on Kaine's behalf by his mother,

Elizabeth Whitfield, alleged that the companies failed to warn

that their specialized formulas used by newborn intensive care

units in hospitals could cause necrotizing enterocolitis, a

disease that almost exclusively affects premature infants and

has an estimated mortality rate of more than 20%.

Kaine, now seven years old, was born prematurely at less

than 28 weeks, weighing just over 1,000 grams or 2.2 pounds, and

developed the disease after being fed formula at St. Louis

Children's Hospital. He had surgery for his illness and

survived, but will have lifelong developmental and health

problems as a result, according to the lawsuit.

Reuters watched the trial through Courtroom View Network.

The case is one of about 1,000 similar lawsuits around the

country, which have raised alarm from doctors who say the

litigation could threaten the formulas' availability or affect

medical decisions.

Abbott CEO Robert Ford told investors in an Oct. 16 call

that it would be "very difficult for any company to remain on

the market with these products" in the face of "indefinite

liability." Reckitt in July said it was "considering options"

for Mead Johnson, and CEO Kris Licht did not rule out a sale.

Abbott and Mead Johnson have said that, while mother's and

donated human milk protect against necrotizing enterocolitis,

formula does not cause it. The companies have said that the

benefits of human milk are widely known and incorporated into

hospital feeding practices.

Two cases that went to trial earlier this year resulted in

verdicts of $60 million against Mead and $495 million against

Abbott.

Following those verdicts, U.S. regulatory agencies and a

working group of scientists convened by the National Institutes

of Health said current evidence does not support the hypothesis

that formula causes necrotizing enterocolitis. Abbott and Mead

were not allowed to present those statements to the jury in the

latest trial.