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Antibiotic exposure in neonatal intensive care units (NICU) is high. This study describes antibiotic use in very preterm infants and examines the association between duration of exposure and outcomes in blood culture negative (CN) infants. 

Preterm birth is associated with increased mortality and morbidity, particularly due to lung disease. Low- and middle-income countries (LMIC) have the highest rates of preterm birth. Infants born extremely preterm rarely survive, so the largest burden is amongst moderate-to-late preterm (MLP) infants. The long-term health impact on MLP children in LMIC is poorly understood. The aim of this study was to assess the effect of MLP birth on lung function trajectories from birth to 5 years in the Drakenstein Child Health Study.

Skin care for very and extremely preterm infant is an important and previously underappreciated topic. Coconut oil skin care for preterm infants is a promising option, but several important questions remain including the theoretical potential for allergic sensitization.

High-frequency oscillatory ventilation (HFOV) is an established mode of respiratory support in the neonatal intensive care unit. Large clinical trial data is based on first intention use in preterm infants with acute respiratory distress syndrome. Clinical practice has evolved from this narrow population. HFOV is most often reserved for term and preterm infants with severe, and often complex, respiratory failure not responding to conventional modalities of respiratory support.

Preterm birth is increasingly recognised as adversely influencing lifelong lung function. This Series paper on prematurity-associated lung disease reviews studies reporting longitudinal lung function measurements in individuals who were born preterm. Evidence suggests that preterm birth alters lung function trajectories from early life onwards, with implications for future respiratory morbidity. We propose that this population needs rigorous follow up that should include systematic monitoring of lung function across the lifespan, starting in childhood.

This prospective longitudinal study examined changes in milk sodium concentration (Na) and sodium:potassium ratio (Na:K), microbiological culture, milk production, and breast health in relation to mastitis after preterm birth.

Parent-infant interactions provide the foundation for the development of infant socioemotional wellbeing. Preterm birth can have a substantial, and often detrimental, impact on the quality of early parent-infant interactions. Sensory processing difficulties, common in preterm infants, are further associated with poorer interaction quality.

Exhaled breath condensate (EBC) collection is a non-invasive, safe method for measurement of biomarkers in patients with lung disease. Other methods of obtaining samples from the lungs, such as bronchoalveolar lavage, are invasive and require anaesthesia/sedation in neonates and infants. EBC is particularly appealing for assessing biomarkers in preterm-born infants, a population at risk of ongoing lung disease.

Limited studies have described parenteral nutrition (PN) practices and clinical outcomes in term and late preterm infants. The aim of this study was to describe the current practice of PN in term and late preterm infants and their short-term clinical outcomes.

Instability of peripheral oxyhemoglobin saturation (SpO2) in preterm infants is correlated with late disability and is poorly understood. We hypothesised that a reduced ventilation to perfusion ratio (VA/Q) is the key predisposing factor for SpO2 instability.