Related Experiment Videos
Multicentre trial on feeding low birthweight infants: effects of diet on early growth
Insights
Preterm infants fed a new preterm formula showed improved early postnatal growth compared to those fed banked breast milk. Formula feeding helped infants maintain their birth weight percentile, unlike breast milk or supplemented breast milk diets.
Area of Science:
- Neonatal nutrition
- Pediatric growth and development
- Clinical trials
Background:
- Optimal nutrition is crucial for preterm infant growth and development.
- Different feeding strategies, including breast milk and specialized formulas, are used for preterm infants.
- Early postnatal growth is a key indicator of later health outcomes.
Purpose of the Study:
- To compare the early postnatal growth performance of preterm infants fed different diets.
- To assess the impact of diet on weight gain, linear growth, and head circumference.
- To identify feeding strategies that promote optimal growth in preterm infants.
Main Methods:
- Interim analysis of a multicentre study involving 194 preterm infants.
- Two parallel trials: banked breast milk vs. preterm formula, and these diets as supplements to maternal milk.
- Data collected on weight, length, and head circumference to assess growth patterns.
Main Results:
- Significant dietary effects on regaining birth weight and subsequent growth were observed.
- Infants fed banked breast milk, especially those under 1200g, took longer to reach 2000g compared to formula-fed infants.
- Preterm formula as a sole diet was associated with maintaining birth weight percentile by discharge.
Conclusions:
- Diet plays a major role in early postnatal growth of preterm infants.
- Specialized preterm formula may support better early growth and weight maintenance compared to banked breast milk.
- Further research is needed to understand long-term outcomes of different feeding strategies.
Abstract:
A large multicentre study on the short and long term clinical and developmental outcome of infants randomised to different diets is being undertaken. This report represents an interim analysis of the early postnatal growth performance of an unselected population of 194 preterm infants (gestation, mean (SD) 31 . 0 (2 . 9) weeks; birthweight, mean (SD) 1364 (294) g), both ill and well, examined in two (of four) parallel trials. One trial compared banked breast milk with a new preterm formula (primary trial); the other compared these diets as supplements to maternal milk (supplement trial). A major dietary effect on the number of days taken to regain birthweight and subsequent gains in weight, length, and head circumference was observed in the primary trial. Infants fed banked breast milk and weighing less than 1200 g at birth took a calculated additional three weeks to reach 2000 g compared with those fed on the preterm formula. A significant influence of diet on body proportions was seen in the relation between body weight, head circumference, and length. Similar though smaller differences in growth patterns were seen in the supplement trial. By the time they reach 2000 g, infants of birthweights 1200 to 1849 g fed on banked breast milk and infants below 1200 g fed on either banked breast milk or maternal milk supplemented (as necessary) with banked breast milk, fulfilled stringent criteria for failure to thrive (weight less than 2 SD below the mean for age). Only infants fed the preterm formula as their sole diet had maintained their birth centile by discharge from hospital. The misleading nature of comparisons between extrauterine and intrauterine steady state weight gains is emphasised.