Monitoring the Use of Human Milk, the Ideal Food for Very Low-Birth-Weight Infants-A Narrative Review.

Aware of the utmost importance of feeding premature babies-especially those of lower weight-with human milk, as well as the need to monitor this important element of neonatal care, we focused on four aspects in this review. First of all, we reviewed the beneficial effects of feeding premature infants with breast milk in the short and long term. Secondly, we performed a quantitative evaluation of the rates of breastfeeding and feeding with human milk in Very-Low-Birth-Weight infants (VLBWs) during hospitalization in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) and at discharge. Our aim was to take a snapshot of the current status of human milk-feeding care and track its trends over time. Then we analyzed, on the one hand, factors that have been proven to facilitate the use of maternal milk and, on the other hand, the risk factors of not feeding with breast milk. We also considered the spread of human milk banking so as to assess the availability of donated milk for the most vulnerable category of premature babies. Finally, we proposed a protocol designed as a tool for the systematic monitoring of actions that could be planned and implemented in NICUs in order to achieve the goal of feeding even more VLBWs with human milk.

Trend and Predictors of Breastmilk Feeding among Very-Low-Birth-Weight Infants in NICU and at Discharge.

Mothers' own milk (MOM) for premature babies is considered a life-saving drug for its proven protective action against the complications of prematurity and for effects on outcome in the short and long term, especially neurological ones. We studied the use of MOM for infants weighing <1500 g for a period of 5 years, evaluating the trend over time and the impact of some variables on human milk feeding performance. Statistical comparisons concerned the rate of feeding with breast milk during a stay in an NICU and at discharge with respect to two types of variables: (1) maternal and neonatal characteristics (gestational age, birth weight, type of pregnancy (whether single or twin), maternal age) and (2) feeding characteristics (time of the start of minimal enteral feeding and availability of MOM, days until the achievement of full enteral feeding). Group comparisons were performed using ANOVA or t-test for continuous variables and Pearson chi-squared test or Fisher exact test for categorical variables. We observed an increase, between 2017 and 2021, in MOM use (p = 0.003). The availability of the own mothers' milk occurred, on average, on the fourth day of life and improved over the years. The start of minimal enteral feeding (MEF) with human milk averaged 1.78 days, and 54.3% of VLBWs received MEF with donor milk on the first day of life. The average percentage of feeding with the mothers' milk at discharge was 47.6%, with 36.1% of exclusive MOM and an increase from 45.8% in 2017 (33.3% exclusive) to 58.82% (41.18% exclusive) in 2021. The mean average daily growth of the weight improved (p < 0.001) during this period, and there was no statistical difference between infants fed with maternal milk and those fed with bank milk. Older maternal age, early-start feeding with maternal milk and low gestational age had a statistically significant impact on feeding with MOM at discharge.

Feeding Twins with Human Milk and Factors Associated with Its Duration: A Qualitative and Quantitative Study in Southern Italy.

BACKGROUND: Over the past year, there has been a rise in twin births. The current scientific consensus recommended breast-feed milk for all newborns for at least 6 months. They stated that it is possible to meet the nutritional needs of two or more newborns with only one mother's milk. More information would be desirable about the factors that influence or lead to the initiation and interruption of breastfeeding. The quality of the evidence available from multiple studies has been inconclusive and therefore led to controversial interpretations and practices. AIMS: The first aim of this study was to analyze the extent of the feeding of multiples with breast milk in the experience of our clinical unit in terms of incidence and duration. The second objective was to evaluate the correlation between maternal, perinatal and neonatal variables with breast milk feeding rates and duration. METHODS: The study was conducted between 2015 and 2020, in a NICU in Southern Italy (San Giovanni Rotondo, Foggia). Sixty-one women who have given birth to multiples were enrolled into the study. Newborn data were retrospectively collected by informatic database and breastfeeding information were collected by a questionnaire. RESULTS: In our centre, the percentage of twins out of the total number of births over the years has almost doubled from 1.28% in 2015 to 2.48% in 2020 and the 88% of twins are premature. 18.1% received breast milk for more than 6 months and 6.3% received it for more than 12 months. Infants of lower gestational age and weight, born to multiparous, more mature and medium-high schooling mothers received breast milk for a longer period. 35% of women explained that the interruption of breastfeeding was due to the insufficient milk production and 41% to the stress and difficulties in managing the twins. Qualitative analysis of maternal narrative revealed, for many of them, the awareness of the importance of breastfeeding and the efforts made to try to give breast milk, but also fears about the quantity of milk and satiety of their children. CONCLUSIONS: It is important to identify the factors both favoring and obstructing maternal milk feeding of multiples and it would be desirable the activation of a network of training and support for mothers after discharge, with particular regard to the categories found to be less inclined.

The Revolution of Breast Milk: The Multiple Role of Human Milk Banking between Evidence and Experience-A Narrative Review.

The review recalls the importance of breast milk and deepens the theme of human milk banking, a virtuous reality that is expanding all over the world but is still little known. In the last 15 years, modern biological technologies have crystallized the concept of uniqueness and irreproducibility of human milk, by establishing three new principles: first: human milk: a "life-saving" drug; second: human milk: the best food for preterm infants; and third: human milk: the main component of premature infant care. Our experience teaches us that human milk banking plays many roles that need to be known and shared.

Might the Mothers of Premature Babies Feed Them and Devote Some Milk to the Milk Bank?

The breast milk is the gold standard food for the feeding of the premature baby: it is the natural way to provide excellent nutritional, immunological, and biological nutriment so as to facilitate a healthy growth and the development of the infants. When the breast milk is not available, the alternative is represented by the donated milk. The mothers of premature infants are important opportunity if we consider the fact that they could devote some milk both because they provide a food which is closer to the needs of the vulnerable category of newborns and because it is, for the mothers, a way to overcome the detachment and the psychological trauma of a premature birth. There are no data on this kind of donation. The aim of the study is to evaluate the contribution of the milk donation to the HMB of CSS by women who gave birth to premature infants of gestational age <35 weeks and to analyze the macronutrient composition of the "preterm" donated milk. The CSS HMB has recruited 659 donors totalling 2236 liters of donated milk over a period of 7 years. 38 donors (5.7%) gave birth to a gestational age <35 weeks. Almost 20% of the donated milk comes from mothers of premature babies and this is a very important fact because it shows the huge potential belonging to this category of mothers. Taking into account the parameter regarding the birth weight, it was found that VLBW mothers contributed for 56% to preterm donation while ELBW mothers contributed for 41%. By evaluating the variable gestational age, about 40% of the average total donation derives from mothers who gave birth before the 25 weeks, while a contribution of 46% is attributable to the category of newborns with a GA between 25 and 32 weeks. Besides, some other exceptional examples can be outlined. Regarding the correlation analysis DM resulted in negative correlation with GA weeks (r=-0.31, p=0.058) and with BW g (r=-0.30, p=0.068) achieving values which are very close to the significance. The comparison between the donor volume averages of the preterm and full-term groups is statistically significant. The composition data are in line with the literature: there is an increase by 18 % in the protein component of the milk deriving from the mothers of the premature infants; the gap in carbohydrates is less significant (5-6%) and the gap in calories is similarly low being only 2% higher than the single donor milk and 11% more than the pooled milk. The data on the lipids line up to single donor term milk, while it grows by 24% compared to the pooled one. The study shows that even at very low or extreme gestational age it is possible to obtain an appropriate production of breast milk. This awareness becomes a fundamental starting point for the activation in a standardized way of all the strategies of promotion and support of food that have proven effective with the HM in NICU.