Formula versus donor breast milk for feeding preterm or low birth weight infants.

Study answer

What this study found

Formula feeding leads to higher rates of in-hospital weight gain, linear growth, and head growth compared to donor breast milk, while also increasing the risk of necrotising enterocolitis. No significant effects on long-term growth or neurodevelopment were observed.

Study & population

Involves 12 randomized controlled trials with a total of 1879 infants, assessing the effects on growth and development.

Intervention

Comparison of formula (term or preterm) versus donor breast milk in feeding preterm or low birth weight infants.

Key limitation

High levels of heterogeneity in the results; concerns about methodological quality, allocation concealment, and funding biases in the included trials.

View full study detailsView sourceOpen PDF

Original abstract