Relationships of Feeding and Mother's Own Milk with Fecal Calprotectin Levels in Preterm Infants

Document Type

Article

Publication Date

2016

Digital Object Identifier (DOI)

https://doi.org/10.1089/bfm.2015.0115

Abstract

Objective: To describe longitudinal effects of feeding volume and type of milk on fecal calprotectin (f-CP) in very low–birth weight (VLBW) infants.

Study Design: Prospective data were collected across Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) admission for 6 weeks or until discharge in 75 VLBW neonates. The mean gestational age on entry into the study was 29 weeks.

Results: Seventy-four (99%) mothers provided expressed milk in varying amounts. Twenty-three mothers (31%) provided exclusive mother's own milk (MOM) throughout. Preterm infant formula (PIF) and pasteurized donor milk were added to feedings of remaining infants. Pooled MOM was analyzed weekly for levels of a panel of cytokines, chemokines, and growth factors, and secretory Immunoglobulin A (sIgA) so that the exact amount of exposure to the gut of these milk bioactives could be estimated. f-CP levels ranged from 160 to 350 μg/g stool. Total feeding volume was positively associated with f-CP, controlling for infant weight, and f-CP levels rose across time. Exclusive MOM feedings for the entire measurement period were associated with rising levels of f-CP, but mixed feedings (MOM with added PIF or pasteurized donor milk (PDM) did not show this increase over time.

Conclusion: The presence of f-CP may represent a response to milk volumes and MOM, which represents normal development rather than always implicating pathological inflammation in the VLBW infant.

Was this content written or created while at USF?

Yes

Citation / Publisher Attribution

Breastfeeding Medicine, v. 11, issue 4, p. 207-212

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