Growth and morbidity of extremely preterm infants after early full enteral nutrition

OBJECTIVES: To evaluate feasibility and consequences of accelerated feeding advancement on short-term outcomes in extremely low gestational age neonates (ELGANs) who stayed in our institution for >28 days. METHODS: Retrospective single-centre cohort analysis covering the years 2011-2013. Data are presented as median (IQR). RESULTS: Infants '(n=77) birth weight was 745 (640 to 960) g and gestational age at birth 26.7 (25.1 to 27.4) weeks. Full enteral feeds were attained by postnatal day 7 (5 to 11). Weight gain from birth to discharge was 14.3 (13.3 to 16.1) g/kg/day, change in SD score for weight -0.03 (-0.55 to 0.46) and 0.09 (-0.78 and 0.82) for head circumference. Rates of necrotising enterocolitis and spontaneous intestinal perforation in all ELGANs admitted during the study period were 3.1% and 9.4%, respectively. CONCLUSIONS: This cohort of ELGANs showed good weight gain and head growth after early full enteral nutrition. The impact of this feeding practice on neonatal morbidity and long-term outcome remains to be tested in adequately powered randomised trials.