Neurodevelopmental in Relation to Breastfeeding–Experiences among Hungarian Preterm Infants at 12 Months of Corrected Age: Empirical Study

Abstract

Preterm and low birth weight infants are at higher risk of neurodevelopmental outcomes; breastfeeding offers several beneficial aspects for them. This study aimed to describe the average neurodevelopmental outcomes of preterm infants and examine the associations between neurodevelopment and breastfeeding among Hungarian preterm infants at 12 months of corrected age. 154 preterm infants with low birth weight (<2500 g) and their mothers were participated in this study. Bayley-III Screening Test (Bayley Scales of Infant and Toddler Development Screening Test, Third Edition) was administered to measure the cognitive, language and motor skills of infants; breastfeeding data was obtained through parental anamnesis. To analyze data, independent sample t-test or the Welch t-test, Mann-Whitney tests, Chi-square tests of independence and Spearman's rank correlation test were used to. Concerning the risk of developmental delay, Receptive and Expressive language and Fine motor subscales were the lowest. Examination of the associations between breastfeeding and neurodevelopmental performance identified significantly higher cognitive (U = 2047.5; P = 0.023) and fine motor (U = 2096.0; P = 0.037) skills in infants who were breastfed. We found significant positive correlations between the duration of breastfeeding and cognitive, expressive language and fine motor skills. The study draws the attention to the importance of breastfeeding and early screening. Further research is required to examine the casual relationship between neurodevelopmental outcomes and breastfeeding.