Background: Necrotizing enterocolitis (NEC) is a frequent cause of mortality and morbidity in very low birth weight (VLBW) infants. Human milk (HM) feeding has been associated with lower risk of NEC. However, mothers of VLBW infants often experience insufficient milk production, resulting in mixed feedings of HM and formula. Moreover, medical complications often limit the volume of feeding they can be given.Objective: To determine if high proportions of (50% or greater) HM enteral feeding within the first 14 days of life are protective against NEC.Method: This was a prospective cohort study of VLBW infants who were grouped according to the HM proportion of enteral feeding in the first 14 days: <50% (low human milk, LHM, n ¼ 46) and X50% (high human milk, HHM, n ¼ 156). The outcome of interest was development of NEC (Bell stage 2 or 3). Logistic regression was used to estimate odds ratios (OR) and 95% confidence intervals (CI) and to assess potential confounding due to perinatal risk factors.Result: Two hundred and two infants were studied. Confirmed NEC occurred in 5/46 (10.6%) of the LHM group, as compared with 5/156 (3.2%) of the HHM. Gestational age was the only perinatal factor associated with risk of NEC. After adjustment for gestational age, HHM was associated with a lower risk of NEC ((OR ¼ 0.17, 95% CI: 0.04 to 0.68), P ¼ 0.01). Conclusion:Enteral feeding containing at least 50% HM in the first 14 days of life was associated with a sixfold decrease in the odds of NEC.

Although studies have examined the effects of interventions focused on preterm infants, few studies have examined the effects on maternal distress (anxiety, depressive symptoms, post-traumatic stress symptoms, parenting stress) or parenting. This study examined the effects of the auditory-tactile-visual-vestibular (ATVV) intervention and kangaroo care (KC) on maternal distress and the mother-infant relationship compared to an attention control group. 240 mothers from four hospitals were randomly assigned to the three groups. Maternal characteristics in the three groups were similar: 64.1% of ATVV mothers, 64.2% of KC mothers, and 76.5% of control mothers were African American; maternal age averaged 26.3 years for ATVV mothers, 28.1 for KC mothers, and 26.6 for control mothers; and years of education averaged 13.6 for ATVV and KC mothers, and 13.1 for control mothers. Mothers only differed on parity: 68.4% of ATVV and 54.7% of KC mothers were first-time mothers as compared to 43.6% of control mothers. Their infants had a similar mean gestational ages (27.0 weeks for ATVV, 27.2 for KC, and 27.4 for control) and mean birthweights (993 grams for ATVV, 1022 for KC, and 1023 for control). Mothers completed questionnaires during hospitalization, and at 2, 6 and 12 months corrected age on demographic characteristics, depressive symptoms, state anxiety, post-traumatic stress symptoms, parenting stress, worry about child health, and child vulnerability (only at 12 months). At 2 and 6 months, 45-minute videotapes of mother-infant interactions were made, and the HOME Inventory was scored. Behaviors coded from the videotapes and a HOME subscale were combined into five interactive dimensions: maternal positive involvement and developmental stimulation and child social behaviors, developmental maturity, and irritability. Intervention effects were examined using general linear mixed models controlling for parity and recruitment site. The groups did not differ on any maternal distress variable. Kangaroo care mothers showed a more rapid decline in worry than the other mothers. The only interactive dimensions that differed between the groups were child social behaviors and developmental maturity, which were both higher for kangaroo care infants. Change over time in several individual infant behaviors was affected by the interventions. When mothers reported on the interventions they performed, regardless of group assignment, massage (any form including ATVV) was associated with a more rapid decline in depressive symptoms and higher HOME scores. Performing either intervention was associated with lower parenting stress. These findings suggest that as short-term interventions, KC and ATVV, have important effects on mothers and their preterm infants, especially in the first half of the first year.

A 42-day tapering course of dexamethasone was associated with an increased risk of cerebral palsy. Possible explanations include an adverse effect of this therapy on brain development and/or improved survival of infants who either already have neurologic injury or who are at increased risk for such injury.

Objective-To test the hypothesis that children born preterm are more likely to screen positive on the M-CHAT for an autism spectrum disorder.Study design-We explored the possibility that motor, vision, hearing and cognitive impairments might contribute to this increase.Results-Relative to children who could walk, the odds for screening positive on the M-CHAT was increased 23-fold for those unable to sit or stand independently and more than 7-fold for those needing assistance to walk. Compared with children without a CP diagnosis, those with quadriparesis were 13 times more likely and those with hemiparesis were 4 times more likely to screen positive. Children with major vision or hearing impairments were 8 times more likely to screen positive than those without such impairments. Relative to those with an MDI greater than 70, the odds for screening positive were increased 13-fold for those with an MDI below 55 and more than 4-fold for those with an MDI 55-69.Conclusion-Major motor, cognitive, visual, and hearing impairments appear to account for more than half of the positive M-CHAT screens among extremely low gestational age newborns. Even after eliminating those with such impairments, 10% of children, or nearly double the expected rate, screened positive.

Background Extremely preterm birth is associated with subsequent behavioral problems. We hypothesized that perinatal systemic inflammation, a risk factor for cerebral white matter injury and cognitive impairment, is associated with behavior problems observed at 2 years. Methods In a cohort of 600 children born before 28 weeks gestation, we measured 25 inflammation-related proteins in blood collected on postnatal days 1, 7, and 14, and identified behavior problems using parent responses to the Child Behavior Checklist for Ages 1.5–5 (CBCL/1.5-5) at two years of age. A persistent or recurrent protein elevation was defined as a concentration in the highest quartile (for gestational age and postnatal age) on at least two days approximately one week apart. Behavior problems were defined by CBCL/1.5-5 subscale scores at or above the 93rd percentile. Results A single-day elevation of ICAM-3 was associated with an increased risk of an attention problem, as were persistent or recurrent elevations of MPO, IL-6, TNF-RI, IL-8, ICAM-3, VEGF-R1, and VEGF-R2. These associations persisted among infants without white matter injury and cognitive impairment. Conclusion Among children born extremely prematurely, recurrent or persistent elevations of inflammation-related proteins in blood during in the first two postnatal weeks are associated with an attention problem at age 2 years.