Search

Introduction: Breastfeeding is the benchmark for feeding infants during the first months of life, regardless of their birth weight. The objective of our study was to compare the weight growth of a cohort of low birth weight (LBW) newborns in the first 6 months of life according to the type of breastfeeding adopted by the mother. Methodology: It was a prospectiveand analytical study of a cohort of newborns from LBW. It took place over a period of 17 months at the level of a reference structure in Dakar. We have included all newborns born “in-born” weighing less than 2500 g with a threshold of 1000 g. The data was analyzed with SPSS version 17 software. Results: The average birth weight of newborns was 1821.8 g with extremes ranging from 1000 g to 2400 g and the median weight of 1840 g. The majority of our population had a birth weight ≥ 1500 g (83%) with more than half of them being premature (58.9%). Depending on the type of breastfeeding adopted by the mother, 33/112 newborns were on exclusive breastfeeding (EBF). During the first 6 months of life, the average weight gain was significantly better in infants on EBF (747.9 g) compared to infants on mixed breastfeeding (728.9 g) and artificial breastfeeding (676.6 g). Conclusion: Better awareness of mothers should be made during hospitalization and during follow-up consultations for newborns of LBW to encourage the continuation of the EBF which remains the best food for this infant population.