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[Hypernatremic dehydration associated with breast-feeding]
O Peñalver Giner1, J Gisbert Mestre, J Casero Soriano
1Servicio de Pediatría, Hospital Francesc de Borja de Gandía, Valencia, Spain. tomas_mig@gva.es
Insights
Infant hypernatremia, a condition of high sodium levels in newborns, is increasing due to inadequate breastfeeding techniques. Providing new mothers with better support can help prevent this potentially serious condition.
Area of Science:
- Pediatrics
- Neonatology
- Endocrinology
Context:
- Rising incidence of hypernatremia in exclusively breastfed infants.
- Hypernatremia in neonates is associated with significant morbidity.
- Breastfeeding is encouraged, but potential risks need to be addressed.
Purpose:
- To describe clinical characteristics of infant hypernatremia.
- To identify optimal treatment and preventive strategies.
- To analyze cases of hypernatremia in exclusively breastfed neonates.
Summary:
- Twelve exclusively breastfed neonates (<30 days) with serum sodium ≥150 mEq/L were identified.
- Mean gestational age was 39.5 weeks, mean birth weight 3440g, mean weight loss 13.7%, mean serum sodium 152.75 mEq/L.
- Common symptoms included weight loss, irritability, and fever; most mothers were primiparous.
Impact:
- Highlights the link between breastfeeding technique and infant hypernatremia.
- Suggests inadequate breastfeeding by inexperienced mothers as a cause.
- Emphasizes the need for enhanced professional support for breastfeeding mothers.
Background:
During the last 10 years the number of publications reporting a rise in the incidence of hypernatremia in children who are exclusively breast-fed has increased.
Objective:
To report the results of a series of cases detected in a district hospital in the last 6 years in order to better delineate the clinical characteristics of infant hypernatremia, its optimal treatment and preventive measures.
Material And Methods:
The selection criteria for our study included all neonates aged less than 30 days with serum sodium concentrations equal to or greater than 150 mEq/mL who were exclusively breast fed. Cases were identified through the departmental database.
Results:
Twelve newborns were identified who presented the following characteristics: mean gestational age of 39.5 weeks, mean birth weight of 3440 grams, mean percentage of weight loss from birth 13.7 % and mean serum sodium value 152.75 mEg/mL. Five neonates (42 %) were admitted from the maternity unit and seven (58 %) from the emergency department. The presenting complaints included weight loss in nine infants, irritability in six, fever in six, poor feeding in five and jaundice in two. Most of the neonates had more than one symptom. Ten of the mothers (83.33 %) were primiparous and two (16.67 %) were secundiparous.
Conclusions:
Hypernatremia due to breast-feeding is a consequence of inadequate breast-feeding technique in inexperienced mothers. A possible solution would be for health professionals to provide mothers with greater support.
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