Abstract
The advantages of breast feeding as against formula feeding have to be considered in developing countries in terms of adequate weight gain versus high risk of mortality and morbidity in artificially fed preterm and low birth weight infants. Infants born in our unit are discharged home on exclusive breast feeding. Preterm babies are given their own mother's breast milk once early neonatal problems are settled, gradually increasing the number of direct breast feeds. At discharge from the special care nursery these infants are exclusively breast-fed. The weight gain of 355 preterm low birth weight infants who were exclusively breast fed by their own mothers after discharge from the special caro nursory was analysod prospectively over the first 25 weeks of infancy. The infants were divided into 4 categories - 30 weeks or less gestation with birth weight appropriate to the gestation (AGA), and small for gestation (SGA), over 30 weeks of gestation SGA and AGA. There were 22 infants of 30 weeks or less gestational age. All were AGA, 333 infants were between 31 weeks gestation to 36 weeks gestation. 106 were SGA and 227 were AGA. The growth velocity for all groups of babies varied between 20 to 30 gms per day. Less than 30 week AGA infants had a growth delay up to 3 weeks. Among the infants over 30 weeks the AGA infants had a more rapid growth than the SGA infants. All 3 groups had a brisk catch up phase and doubled their birth weight by 10 to 12 weeks of age and tripled by 16 to 10 weeks of age. The weights attained were compared to intrauterine growth rates. Thus exclusive breast feeding of preterm and low birth weight inlants is appropriate to developing countries.
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Kirubakaran, C. EXCLUSIVE BREAST FEEDING AND WEIGHT GAIN IN PRETERM INFANTS. Pediatr Res 35, 275 (1994). https://doi.org/10.1203/00006450-199402000-00124
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1203/00006450-199402000-00124