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Breast‐feeding in neonatal intensive care
Author(s) -
YIP E.,
LEE J.,
SHEEHY Y.
Publication year - 1996
Publication title -
journal of paediatrics and child health
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.631
H-Index - 76
eISSN - 1440-1754
pISSN - 1034-4810
DOI - 10.1111/j.1440-1754.1996.tb02556.x
Subject(s) - medicine , neonatal intensive care unit , breast milk , breast feeding , incidence (geometry) , gestational age , obstetrics , pediatrics , intensive care , pregnancy , intensive care medicine , genetics , biochemistry , chemistry , physics , biology , optics
Objective : To determine the incidence of breast‐feeding in very preterm babies while in neonatal intensive care. Methodology : A retrospective records analysis of all 151 babies with gestational age less than 35 weeks admitted to the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) of a major teaching hospital in 1993. Results : On discharge 64% of babies were having some breast milk (45% having breast milk alone, 19% both breast milk and formula), and 38% some breast‐feeding (17% being solely breast‐fed, the other 21% combining breast‐feeding with either bottle‐feeding or an intragastric tube [IGT]). Breast milk was the first milk for 41% of babies, with 83% having breast milk at some stage. Increasing gestational age was associated with a decreased likelihood of first milk being breast milk (73% of those less than 29 weeks compared to 21% of those aged 33–34 weeks, P <0.001), but with increased rates of breast‐feeding (23 compared to 59%, P = 0.01) and breast milk consumption (42 compared to 73%, P = 0.04). Conclusions : Breast‐feeding rates in NICU are well below those found on discharge for full term babies. Both maternal and staff‐related factors contribute to this. More and better education of mothers, doctors and nurses as well as changes to some unit practices could increase these rates.