In Austria, a retrospective data analysis of premature babies by MedUni Vienna/Vienna General Hospital showed that more nutrition, especially more protein, significantly improved the nutritional status, development and growth of these tiny infants. At the time of their discharge, these infants weighed around a half a kilogram more than conventionally-fed premature infants and they gained a centimeter more in head circumference and height than conventionally-fed premature babies.
“Previously we have been extremely careful with the feeding of these tiny premature babies, for fear of causing enteritis,” explains Andreas Repa of the Department of Pediatrics and Adolescent Medicine at MedUni Vienna/Vienna General Hospital. “However, our data analysis shows that a new strategy, based on recent international studies, is much more successful.”
At Vienna hospital, seventy percent of premature babies born in the 23rd or 24th week of pregnancy –generally the limit for viability – survive, in contrast to about fifty percent internationally.