Breastfeeding your Premature Infant (Resources)

General breastfeeding info

Human Milk Storage (Guidelines for Premature Infants) @ kellymom>

Breastfeeding Premature Babies from LLLI

Breastfeeding the High-Risk Newborn from Lucile Packard Children’s Hospital

Breastfeeding Premature Babies from BabyCenter.com

Kangaroo Mother Care is the website of Dr Nils Bergman. “The purpose of this site is to promote the spread and implementation of kangaroo mother care as the standard method of care for all newborn babies, both premature and full term.”

Breastfeeding the Hospitalized Baby by Cyndi Egbert (not specific to to preemies)

When Baby Is Hospitalized by Tricia Jalbert (not specific to to preemies)

Guidelines for health care providers (also great for parents)

Nutritional Support of the Very Low Birth Weight Infant – Quality Improvement Toolkit (Revised December 2008) from the California Perinatal Quality Care Collaborative. “This first part of a two section Toolkit is designed to provide background information regarding the importance of nutrition and human milk in the VLBW population, and to optimize human milk production and utilization.”

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Nutritional Support of the Very Low Birth Weight Infant (February 2005) from the California Perinatal Quality Care Collaborative, by David Durand MD, William Rhine MD, Jane Morton MD, David Wirtshafter MD, Nancy E. Wight MD, IBCLC. This Toolkit has many resources for both health care professionals and parents.

Recommendations for Minimizing Cytomegalovirus (CMV) Exposure in Breastmilk-Fed Very Low Birth Weight (VLBW) Preterm Infants by Nancy E. Wight MD, IBCLC, FABM, FAAP (February 2005)

Combining hand techniques with electric pumping increases the caloric content of milk in mothers of preterm infants by J Morton, RJ Wong, et al., from Journal of Perinatology (2012) 32: 791–796

Breastfeeding a Preterm Infant after NICU Discharge: Reflections on Ryan’s Story by Paula P. Meier, R.N., DNSc, FAAN and Linda P. Brown, RN, PHD, FAAN, from Breastfeeding Abstracts, August 1997, Volume 17, Number 1, pp. 3-4.

Breastfeeding the Healthy Preterm Infant </= 37 weeks is an excellent guide for health care professionals (and useful for parents too) from the British Colombia Reproductive Care Program

Furman L, Minich N, Hack M. Correlates of lactation in mothers of very low birth weight infants. Pediatrics. 2002 Apr;109(4):e57. This study discusses the factors that enhance long-term breastfeeding for very low birth weight babies.

Pumping, milk expression & supplementing

Establishing and maintaining milk supply when baby is not nursing

Alternate Feeding Methods

Transitioning baby from formula feeding to breastfeeding @

Effect of domperidone on milk production in mothers of premature newborns:

a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial

Evidence-based methods that promote human milk feeding of preterm infants: an expert review Paula P Meier, PhD, R.N.; Tricia J Johnson, PhD; Aloka L Patel, MD; and Beverly Rossman, PhD, R.N.

Mothers’ Stories

The Premature Infant – A Mother’s Perspective by Lenore Goldfarb

General (not breastfeeding related)

Developmental Milestones for Premature Infants by Maureen Mulligan LaRossa, RN

Beyond Infancy: The Older Premature Child from the Emory Developmental Progress Clinic

AAFP Recommendations for Follow-up of the Premature Infant

Helpful books and videos

BreastmilkSolutions offers two excellent videos: “A Premie Needs His Mother: First Steps to Breastfeeding your Premature Baby” and “Breastfeeding: A Guide to Getting Started”
Page last modified: 06/22/2011