Prediction of bone metabolism disorders in premature babies

Abstract

Introduction. Premature newborns suffer from osteopenia, which scientists attribute to vitamin D deficiency. Its deficiency leads to impaired development, the success of which depends on the first years of life. Given the increase in the number of premature babies born after in vitro fertilization, the question arises regarding the risk of them developing vitamin D deficiency.Aim to establish risk factors and develop prognostic tables for vitamin D deficiency in premature infants of the first three years of life born by in vitro fertilization and naturally.Materials and methods. We studied premature newborns (n = 189), which we divided into two groups, born by in vitro fertilization and naturally (comparison group). In each group, two subgroups of infants were identified. In the main in vitro fertilization group, the 1st subgroup included newborns weighing 1,000–1,500 g (n = 52), and the 2nd – weighing less than 1,000 g (n = 49). The comparison group included infants born naturally with a body weight of 1,000–1,500 g (n = 46) and those with a body weight of less than 1,000 g (n = 42).Results. Vitamin D deficiency was established in 67.7 ± 4.8% premature babies during the first year of life. In the second year of life, with intake of vitamin D 1000 IU/day, the level of calcidiol stabilized to normal value. The most sensitive group concerning vitamin D insufficiency is the group of babies with breast-milk substitutes. Factors associated with in vitro fertilization had not shown statistically significant influence on the vitamin D insufficiency in premature babies.Conclusion. We have proposed beneficial predictive tables for an individual risk evaluation of possible bone metabolic conditions in premature babies.