Background: Breastfeeding is the ideal form of nutrition for the healthy growth of infants, and it reduces the risk of malnutrition and several childhood morbidities. Objectives: To assess the breastfeeding practices of mothers and the relationship between these practices and the nutritional status of their children. Methods: It was a descriptive, hospital-based, cross-sectional study that involved children aged six to 24 months in Ilesa, Osun State, Nigeria. Socio-demographic characteristics and breastfeeding practices were documented, anthropometric measurements were obtained, and nutritional status was determined for the children. Underweight, stunting and wasting were defined as z-score < -2 for the weight-for-age, length-for-age and weight-for-length, respectively. A child was taken to be undernourished if any of underweight, stunting or wasting was present. Results: Fifteen (3.6%) of the 420 children studied had mixed feeding from birth, while 273 (65.0%) were exclusively breastfed for six months. Two hundred and sixty-eight (63.8%) of them were still breastfeeding at the time of the study, while 152 (36.2%) had stopped breastfeeding. Nearly one-quarter (103/420; 24.5%) of the children were undernourished. A significantly lower proportion of children who had exclusive breastfeeding were undernourished, compared to those who were not exclusively breastfed (p = 0.033). Exclusive breastfeeding was independently associated with reduced odds of undernutrition (OR = 1.62, 95% CI = 1.02-2.57, p = 0.039). Conclusion: Exclusive breastfeeding for six months significantly reduces the risk of undernutrition among young children.

The management of neonatal hyperinsulinaemic hypoglycaemia remains a major challenge in hospitalized newborns globally. Diazoxide is one of the recommended therapeutic options. We report a late preterm, male infant of a diabetic mother who suffered severe perinatal asphyxia and had persistent hypoglycaemia requiring progressively increasing intravenous glucose concentrations to as high as 12.5 mg/kg/minute along with intravenous hydrocortisone administration. A critical sample revealed inappropriately high serum insulin, inappropriately low serum cortisol and growth hormone responses. Urinalysis was negative for ketones. With the persistence of hypoglycaemia, oral diazoxide at 5 mg/kg/day with oral hydrochlorothiazide was administered. The infant was diazoxide-responsive with complete resolution of hypoglycaemia. Diazoxide therapy was discontinued after 14 days and he was discharged after one month of admission. This report emphasizes the importance of diazoxide in the management of neonatal transient hyperinsulinaemic hypoglycaemia. The availability and cost of diazoxide, as well as the endocrine and metabolic tests, are major concerns in resource-poor settings.