Nutrient Intake in the First Two Weeks of Life and Brain Growth in Preterm Neonates.

BACKGROUND: Optimizing early nutritional intake in preterm neonates may promote brain health and neurodevelopment through enhanced brain maturation. Our objectives were (1) to determine the association of energy and macronutrient intake in the first 2 weeks of life with regional and total brain growth and white matter (WM) maturation, assessed by 3 serial MRI scans in preterm neonates; (2) to examine how critical illness modifies this association; and (3) to investigate the relationship with neurodevelopmental outcomes. METHODS: Forty-nine preterm neonates (21 boys, median [interquartile range] gestational age: 27.6 [2.3] weeks) were scanned serially at the following median postmenstrual weeks: 29.4, 31.7, and 41. The total brain, basal nuclei, and cerebellum were semiautomatically segmented. Fractional anisotropy was extracted from diffusion tensor imaging data. Nutritional intake from day of life 1 to 14 was monitored and clinical factors were collected. RESULTS: Greater energy and lipid intake predicted increased total brain and basal nuclei volumes over the course of neonatal care to term-equivalent age. Similarly, energy and lipid intake were significantly associated with fractional anisotropy values in selected WM tracts. The association of ventilation duration with smaller brain volumes was attenuated by higher energy intake. Brain growth predicted psychomotor outcome at 18 months\u27 corrected age. CONCLUSIONS: In preterm neonates, greater energy and enteral feeding during the first 2 weeks of life predicted more robust brain growth and accelerated WM maturation. The long-lasting effect of early nutrition on neurodevelopment may be mediated by enhanced brain growth. Optimizing nutrition in preterm neonates may represent a potential avenue to mitigate the adverse brain health consequences of critical illness

« Top five » des articles de néonatalogie en 2015 [Top five neonatal articles 2015]

This review includes five randomized controlled trials, published in the Medline database in 2015, which were selected by the Scientific commission of the French society of neonatology, taking into account their influence in perinatology. This selection was presented during the specific "Top five" session in the French congress of neonatal research

« Top five » des articles de néonatalogie en 2015 [Top five neonatal articles 2015].

pour les membres de la Commission scientifique de la Société française de néonatalogie : O. Baud, M. Benard, O. Brissaud, C. Buffat, M.-L. Charkaluk, D. De Luca, G. Favrais, F. Flamein, G. Gascoin, P. Kuhn, E. Lopez ,N. Naassens-Laug, F.Rouget, P. Tourneux, D. Yang, E. Zana-TaiebThis review includes five randomized controlled trials, published in the Medline database in 2015, which were selected by the Scientific commission of the French society of neonatology, taking into account their influence in perinatology. This selection was presented during the specific "Top five" session in the French congress of neonatal research

Near-field & far-field modelling of a sub-wavelength THz source

The THz emission point on a nonlinear electro-optical crystal for generating broadband THz radiation is modeled as a radiating Gaussian aperture. With the wavelengths of the infrared pump beam being much smaller than the wavelength components of the generated THz pulse, a THz sub-wavelength radiating aperture with Gaussian profile is effectively created. This paper investigates this general modelling approach for focused THz radiation generation in electro-optical crystals. Different implementations are employed for the near- and far-field regime. While a numerical approach is required to characterize near-field intensity distributions, a semi-analytical model is sufficient for far-field considerations. The near-field study has ramifications in THz near-field focused beam techniques while far-field investigations elucidate the radiation pattern shape and hence the detectable SNR.Hungyen Lin, Christophe Fumeaux, Bernd Michael Fischer, and Derek Abbot

Modelling of sub-wavelength THz sources as Gaussian apertures

The THz emission point on a nonlinear electro-optical crystal for generating broadband THz radiation is modeled as a radiating Gaussian aperture. With the wavelengths of the infrared pump beam being much smaller than the wavelength components of the generated THz pulse, a THz sub-wavelength radiating aperture with Gaussian profile is effectively created. This paper comprehensively investigates Gaussian apertures in focused THz radiation generation in electro-optical crystals and illustrates the breakdown of the paraxial approximation at low THz frequencies. The findings show that the shape of the radiation pattern causes a reduction in detectable THz radiation and hence contributes significantly to low signal-to-noise ratio in THz radiation generation. Whilst we have demonstrated the findings on optical rectification in this paper, the model may apply without a loss of generality to other types of apertures sources in THz radiation generation.Hungyen Lin, Christophe Fumeaux, Bernd M. Fischer, and Derek Abbot

Les enjeux de l'allaitement maternel pour les nouveau-nés hospitalisés [Issues surrounding the breastfeeding of hospitalized newborns].

The nutritional and physiological qualities of breast milk make it the best food for newborns, favouring their wellbeing and growth. The implementation of a programme encouraging the breastfeeding of hospitalised newborns in care departments requires specific methods of organisation, as well as constant and adapted support from health professionals

Factors That Influence the Sustainability of Human Milk Donation to Milk Banks: A Systematic Review.

Donor human milk is the recommended alternative for feeding preterm or low birth weight infants when the mother's own milk is unavailable or not in sufficient quantity. Globally, the needs of vulnerable infants for donor human milk exceed the supply. This review aimed to identify the factors impacting the sustainability of human milk donation to milk banks. A systematic review of the literature was performed on eight databases to retrieve articles published until December 2021. The study protocol is available in PROSPERO (#CRD42021287087). Among the 6722 references identified, 10 studies (eight quantitative observational and two qualitative) met the eligibility criteria for a total of 7053 participants. Thirty factors influencing the sustainability of the donations to milk banks were identified and categorized as follows: (1) donation duration, (2) donors' infant features (e.g., gestational age, birth weight), (3) donors' features (e.g., socio-demographic characteristics, milk donation history), and (4) factors related to the milk bank and health care systems (awareness and support). The available evidence suggests that larger volumes of donated milk are associated with a longer duration of donation, as are early donation, previous milk donation, and donors with an infant of smaller weight and gestational age. Supporting and encouraging early donation and recruiting donors with infants of low birth weight and low gestational age could support longer donation times and greater volumes of milk donated. To identify efficient strategies and to draw appropriate recommendations to improve donor milk access, future studies should further explore the issues of the sustainability of human milk donation to milk banks

Sources d'exposition aux phtalates dans une unité de soins néonatals [Phthalate exposure in the neonatal intensive care unit].

There are growing concerns on long-term health consequences, notably on fertility rates, of plasticizers such as phthalates. While di(2-ethylhexyl)phthalate (DEHP) is currently used in several medical devices, newborns in the neonatal intensive care unit are both more exposed and more vulnerable to DEHP. The objectives of this study were to identify, count, and describe possible sources of DEHP in a neonatal care unit. Our method consisted in the listing and the inspection of the information on packaging, complemented by contact with manufacturers when necessary. According to the results, 6% of all products and 10% of plastic products contained some DEHP; 71% of these involved respiratory support devices. A vast majority of the items showed no information on the content of DEHP. Further research is needed, particularly to determine the effects of such an early exposure and to study and develop safer alternatives

Power scaling of ultra-thin terahertz beam-splitters

Extent: 2p.A low-cost ultra-thin broadband terahertz beam-splitter based on a thin conductive layer has previously been fabricated and tested. Here, this paper shows the linearity of power scaling of the beam-splitter from lower to higher power in typical terahertz time-domain spectroscopy systems. The presented results consider multiple samples of differing thicknesses.B. S.-Y. Ung, C. Fumeaux, H. Lin, B. M. Fischer, B. W.-H. Ng and D. Abbot