Cycled light in the intensive care unit for preterm and low birth weight infants.

Background: Preterm and low birth weight infants are at an early stage of development, and do not receive adequate maternal circadian signals. They are often cared for over prolonged periods of hospitalisation in neonatal intensive care units (NICU), where environmental circadian stimuli are lacking. Exposure to artificial light-dark cycles may stimulate the development of the circadian system and improve clinical outcomes.

Dexmedetomidine for Less Invasive Surfactant Administration: A Pilot Study.

Introduction: Less invasive surfactant administration (LISA) involves delivering surfactant to a spontaneously breathing infant by passing a thin catheter through the vocal cords and has become the preferred method for surfactant delivery. However, the role of pre-LISA sedation remains unclear.

Objective: The aim of this study was to describe the use of dexmedetomidine for LISA in preterm and early-term infants.

Cue-based feeding in the NICU-a pathway to earlier oral feeding of preterm infants.

Aim: To compare volume-driven and cue-based feeding of low birth weight preterm infants, regarding short-term outcomes, including transition to oral feeds, weight gain, and length of stay.

Methods: This was a retrospective cohort study. Feeding and weight gain outcomes were compared between infants fed by volume-driven and cue-based feeds.

Neurobiological perspective on the development of executive functions.

Executive functions are a set of top-down cognitive processes necessary for emotional self-regulation and goal-directed behaviour supporting, among others, academic abilities. Premature infants are at high risk for subsequent cognitive, psychosocial, or behavioural problems even in the absence of medical complications and in spite of normal brain imaging. Given that this is a sensitive period of brain growth and maturation, these factors may place preterm infants at high risk for executive function dysfunction, disrupted long-term development, and lower academic achievements.

Neurodevelopmental Outcomes Among Infants Born Preterm Fed With Mother's Own Milk: A Comparison of Singletons and Twins.

Objective: To examine associations between early exposure to mother's own milk (MOM) and neurodevelopmental outcomes among preterm infants, and to compare these associations between singletons and twins.

Study Design: Retrospective cohort study that included low-risk infants born at <32 weeks gestational age. Nutrition was documented over a 3-day period at mean ages of 14 and 28 days of life; an average of the 3 days was calculated.

Early Enteral Feeding of the Preterm Infant-Delay until Own Mother's Breastmilk Becomes Available? (Israel, 2012-2017).

Aim: To consider the question of whether to initiate trophic feeds with formula in the absence of own mother's breastmilk or to wait for breastmilk to be available.

Methods: A retrospective study of infants born prior to 32 weeks of gestation during the period 2012-2017 at a single tertiary center in Tel Aviv, Israel. Three TF groups were defined: exclusive breastmilk, mixed, and exclusive formula.

Early exposures and inherent factors in premature newborns are associated with type 1 diabetes.

Background: Pathophysiology of type 1 diabetes (T1D) involves immune responses that may be associated with early exposure to environmental factors among preterm newborns. The aim of this work was to evaluate for association between T1D and maternal, nutritional, and medical exposures during the neonatal period among premature newborns.

Methods: This is a multicenter, matched case-control study.

Neurodevelopmental outcomes of preterm infants born to preeclamptic mothers - A case-control study.

Objective: Preeclampsia during pregnancy is associated with an increased risk for various neonatal morbidities. We aimed to investigate the association between prematurity due to maternal preeclampsia and developmental outcomes.

Study Design: This retrospective matched case-control study included 39 preterm infants (<32 weeks gestation) born to preeclamptic mothers between 2012 and 2016, compared with 39 infants born to mothers without preeclampsia.

Predictors of Developmental and Respiratory Outcomes Among Preterm Infants With Bronchopulmonary Dysplasia.

To examine the importance of perinatal and postnatal environmental factors on developmental and respiratory outcomes among preterm infants with bronchopulmonary dysplasia (BPD). Preterm infants (<32 weeks of gestation) born at a single tertiary medical center between 2012 and 2015 were included. Development was assessed at 12 months corrected age.

Hyper-Reactivity to Salience Limits Social Interaction Among Infants Born Pre-term and Infant Siblings of Children With ASD.

The ability to engage attention with selected stimuli is essential for infants to explore the world and process information relating to their surroundings. There are two main populations with a higher risk to develop attentional and social deficits whose deficits may arise from difficulties in regulating attention to salient cues: (1) siblings of children diagnosed with Autism; and (2) infants who were born pre-term. This study investigated infants' ( = 97) attention-engagement and pupil-dilation (PD) at 9 months of age, using a gaze-contingent paradigm and a structured social interaction.

Using sensor-fusion and machine-learning algorithms to assess acute pain in non-verbal infants: a study protocol.

Introduction: Objective pain assessment in non-verbal populations is clinically challenging due to their inability to express their pain via self-report. Repetitive exposures to acute or prolonged pain lead to clinical instability, with long-term behavioural and cognitive sequelae in newborn infants. Strong analgesics are also associated with medical complications, potential neurotoxicity and altered brain development.

The role of orotic acid measurement in routine newborn screening for urea cycle disorders.

Urea cycle disorders (UCDs), including OTC deficiency (OTCD), are life-threatening diseases with a broad clinical spectrum. Early diagnosis and initiation of treatment based on a newborn screening (NBS) test for OTCD with high specificity and sensitivity may contribute to reduction of the significant complications and high mortality. The efficacy of incorporating orotic acid determination into routine NBS was evaluated.

Increased risk for early hypertriglyceridemia in small for gestational age preterm infants.

Small for gestational age preterm are at increased risk for future metabolic syndrome. Early indication for the disrupted metabolism may be found in the perinatal period. We aimed to evaluate whether small for gestational age preterm infants are at increased risk for hypertriglyceridemia when treated with lipid emulsions, and to investigate the association between triglyceride levels and morbidity.

Factors associated with early phosphate levels in preterm infants.

To investigate perinatal factors and early morbidities associated with early serum phosphate (sPhos) levels in a cohort of preterm infants. Retrospective data were obtained from the medical records of a cohort of 454 infants born at < 32 weeks gestational age. Serum phosphate levels were directly associated with gestational age, body weight z-score, and Apgar scores and inversely associated with timing of enteral nutrition initiation and diet consisting of mostly breast milk.

B4GALT1-congenital disorders of glycosylation: Expansion of the phenotypic and molecular spectrum and review of the literature.

A congenital disorder of glycosylation due to biallelic mutations in B4GALT1 has been previously reported in only three patients with two different mutations. Through homozygosity mapping followed by segregation analysis in an extended pedigree, we identified three additional patients homozygous for a novel mutation in B4GALT1, expanding the phenotypic spectrum of the disease. The patients showed a uniform clinical presentation with intellectual disability, marked pancytopenia requiring chronic management, and novel features including pulmonary hypertension and nephrotic syndrome.

Oral glucose tolerance test for suspected late onset gestational diabetes.

Background: Oral glucose tolerance test is used for the diagnosis of gestational diabetes at the second trimester, however, its use at term has been questioned.

Objective: To compare obstetric outcomes in women with and without abnormal oral glucose tolerance test (OGTT) conducted at term due to large for gestational age (LGA) fetuses or polyhydramnios.

Methods: A retrospective cohort study including all women ≥37 weeks of gestation, with normal glucose challenge test (GCT), who performed 100 g OGTT at term, due to LGA fetus or polyhydramnios between January 2012 and January 2017.

Short-Term Neonatal Outcome among Term Infants after In-Utero Exposure to Beta Blockers.

Background: The need for postnatal monitoring of infants exposed to intrauterine beta blockers (BBs) has not been clearly defined.

Objectives: To evaluate infants exposed to intrauterine BBs in order to estimate the need for postnatal monitoring.

Methods: This retrospective case-control study comprised 153 term infants born to mothers who had been treated with BBs during pregnancy.

Transition From Nasogastric Tube to Oral Feeding: The Role of Parental Guided Responsive Feeding.

Strategies to transition preterm infants from tube to oral feeding vary greatly and the transition may take days to weeks. The study objective was to evaluate the effect of parental guided responsive feeding (PGRF) on this transition. We conducted a randomized controlled trial on infants born at <32 weeks gestation.

Intergenerational relations, circumstances, and changes in mothers' marital quality during two years following childbirth.

In this study, the researchers examined, from an attachment theory perspective, changes in mothers' ( = 707) perception of the marital relationship over the course of the two years following childbirth. We found a decline in perceived quality of mothers' marital relationship over time, as well as several significant associations between birth circumstances (assisted reproductive technology, first/non-first baby), insecure attachment, and certain forms of support from the grandmothers on the one hand, and marital quality immediately after childbirth and over time on the other. Some forms of support served as partial mediators between attachment orientation and marital quality.