The trial was comprised of three study groups of infants whose birth weights ranged between 500 and 1250 grams. Groups one and two began fortification at different times. These first two groups of infants received pasteurized donor human milk-based HMF, Prolact+ H2MFTM from Prolacta Bioscience. The third group received the standard feeding protocol of bovine milk-based HMF, and preterm formula if mother ™s own milk was not available. The most significant difference among the three study groups was the incidence of NEC, which was approximately two-thirds lower in the two study groups using the human milk-based HMF, compared to the study group using bovine milk-based HMF.

Prolact+ H2MF is the first and only commercially available human milk fortifier made from 100% human breast milk. The current standard practice in the NICU uses bovine milk-based products for human milk fortification. A recent study has demonstrated that for very low-birth-weight preterm infants in the NICU, human breast milk decreases the incidence of diseases such as necrotizing enterocolitis (NEC), bronchopulmonary dysplasia (BPD), and sepsis. NEC is a devastating disease of the gut and a leading cause of premature infant death.

Prematurity has been escalating steadily over the past two decades, and one out of eight babies is born prematurely in the U.S. Of that category, about 10% of these births are very low-birth-weight preterm infants. Most babies who use Prolacta products are born weighing less than 1250 grams. These infants are considered very low birth weight, and are at substantial risk of serious health problems, lasting disabilities, and even death. Prolacta ™s products are formulated to meet specific criteria as prescribed by neonatologists. Therefore, Prolacta standardizes their products with precise calories, nutrients, and proteins to meet these criteria.

Source: Prolacta Bioscience, Inc.