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Possible antioxidant effect of vitamin A supplementation in premature infants
K B Schwarz1, J M Cox, S Sharma
1Department of Pediatrics, Johns Hopkins Medical Institutions, Baltimore, Maryland, USA.
Insights
Supplemental vitamin A showed antioxidant effects in vitamin A-deficient preterm infants by reducing lipid peroxidation. Further research is needed to explore larger doses for higher-risk infants.
Area of Science:
- Neonatology
- Nutritional Science
- Biochemistry
Background:
- Oxygen free radical-induced lipid peroxidation is implicated in diseases of prematurity.
- Vitamin A exhibits potent antioxidant properties in vitro, unlike vitamin E.
- This study investigated the in vivo antioxidant effects of vitamin A supplementation in preterm infants.
Purpose of the Study:
- To determine if supplemental vitamin A administration has an antioxidant effect in vitamin A-deficient preterm infants.
- To assess the impact of vitamin A supplementation on lipid peroxidation in this vulnerable population.
Main Methods:
- A prospective, controlled study involving 14 vitamin A-deficient preterm infants (gestational age 29 weeks).
- Infants were randomized to receive standard or supplemented (2.6 µmol/L daily) vitamin A.
- Antioxidant effect was measured by the reduction in expired air ethane (a marker of lipid peroxidation).
Main Results:
- Infants receiving supplemental vitamin A showed a decline in breath ethane values.
- An inverse correlation was observed between supplementation duration and breath ethane levels.
- Serum retinol concentrations did not differ significantly between groups after 3 weeks, despite varied intake.
Conclusions:
- Vitamin A supplementation demonstrated an associated antioxidant effect in vitamin A-deficient preterm infants.
- No immediate clinical benefits were observed, but findings support further investigation.
- Larger doses of vitamin A may warrant study in higher-risk preterm infants with low serum retinol.
Background:
Increased lipid peroxidation caused by oxygen free radicals is thought to be one of the common pathogenetic mechanisms for the so-called oxygen radical diseases of prematurity. Since in vitro studies have shown that various forms of vitamin A can exert antioxidant effects that are more potent than those of vitamin E (treatment with which has been ineffective in these diseases), the purpose of this prospective, controlled study was to determine whether administration of supplemental vitamin A to premature infants deficient in this vitamin would have an antioxidant effect in vivo.
Methods:
Fourteen infants (1181 +/- 35 g; gestational age 29 +/- 0.04 weeks) with a serum retinol concentration at 7 +/- 2 days of age in the deficient range, lower than 0.7 mumol/l (< 20 micrograms/dl), were enrolled in the study. Infants were randomized to receive the standard amount of vitamin A or standard plus supplemental (2.6 mumol/l [2500 IU] orally each day) vitamin A, beginning at 1 week of age. Antioxidant effects of supplementation were assessed by a decrease in lipid peroxidation, quantified by the ethane content of expired air.
Results:
Three weeks after study enrollment, total daily vitamin A intake in the infants receiving supplements was 4.565 +/- 0.236 mumol (4354 +/- 225 IU) versus 1.879 +/- 0.317 mumol/l (1792 +/- 302 IU) in infants receiving standard amounts of the vitamin. In spite of the difference in intake of vitamin A, 3 weeks after study enrollment, serum retinol concentrations did not differ between the infants given supplements and those receiving standard amounts of vitamin A, 0.70 +/- 0.21 versus 0.66 +/- 0.07 mumol/l (20 +/- 6 micrograms/dl versus 19 +/- 2 micrograms/dl, respectively). In the infants receiving supplemental vitamin A, breath ethane values declined from baseline values. There was an inverse correlation between the number of weeks of supplementation and breath ethane values, whereas there was no significant correlation between the duration of the study and breath ethane values in the infants not given supplements.
Conclusions:
Our data suggest that supplementation with vitamin A in a small group of vitamin A-deficient preterm infants was associated with an antioxidant effect. Although no immediate clinical benefits were associated with supplementation, the data provide the rationale for future investigations of possible antioxidant effects of (larger amounts?) of vitamin A in higher risk premature infants born with subnormal serum retinol concentrations.