5. Conclusions
VLBW, prematurity
This study showed that feeding VLBW infants with MOM supplemented (when necessary) with pasteurized PDM has a positive impact on protein intake, as well as on body weight and head circumference at the end of the three-week intervention. Although the absolute value of body weight was also positively impacted at discharge, Δz-scores of anthropometric characteristics studied from birth to discharge did not differ significantly between groups. Whether, in our study population, the positive impact of PDM on growth during the initial vulnerable period of life might also have beneficial effects on neurodevelopment later in life remains to be further studied. Considering the unique nutritional needs of VLBW infants, milk banks should prioritize feeding them with milk expressed from mothers delivering prematurely when MOM is unavailable or insufficient. Efforts should be made to match, if possible, the prematurity level of donor milk to that of the infant.To our knowledge, this is one of the first studies where PDM was used and analyzed for its nutritional content. Further research is required to establish the short- and long-term effects of feeding VLBW infants with PDM if required.