The evidence in the form of high quality randomized trials is generally fairly weak in this area, and for this reason different neonatal intensive care units may have different practices and this results in a fairly large variation in practice. The care of preterm infants also varies in different countries and depends on resources that are available. Human breast milk and formula
The American Academy of Pediatrics recommended feeding preterm infants human milk, finding "significant short- and long-term beneficial effects," including lower rates of necrotizing enterocolitis (NEC). In the absence of evidence from randomised controlled trials about the effects of feeding preterm infants with formula compared with mothers own breast milk, data collected from other types of studies suggest that mothers own breast milk is likely to have advantages over formula in terms of the babys growth and development. When a mothers breast milk is not available, formula is probably better than donor breast milk for preterm babies in terms of weight gain, linear growth and head growth but there may be little or no difference in terms of neuro-developmental disability, death or necrotising enterocolitis. Fortified human breast milk and preterm/term formula
Breast milk or formula alone may not be sufficient to meet the nutritional needs of some preterm infants. Fortification of breast milk or formula by adding extra nutrients is an approach often taken for feeding preterm infants, with the goal of meeting the high nutritional demand. High quality randomized controlled trials are needed in this field to determine the effectiveness of fortification.
Notable cases
James Elgin Gill (born on 20 May 1987 in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada) was the earliest premature baby in the world, until that record was broken in 2004. He was 128 days premature (21 weeks 5 days gestation) and weighed 624 g (1 lb 6 oz). He survived.In 2014, Lyla Stensrud, born in San Antonio, Texas, U.S. became the youngest premature baby in the world. She was born at 21 weeks 4 days and weighed 410 grams (less than a pound). Kaashif Ahmad resuscitated the baby after she was born. As of November 2018, Lyla was attending preschool. She had a slight delay in speech, but no other known medical issues or disabilities.Amillia Taylor is also often cited as the most premature baby. She was born on 24 October 2006 in Miami, Florida, U.S. at 21 weeks and 6 days gestation. This report has created some confusion as her gestation was measured from the date of conception (through in vitro fertilization) rather than the date of her mothers last menstrual period, making her appear 2 weeks younger than if gestation was calculated by the more common method. At birth, she was 23 cm (9 in) long and weighed 280 g (10 oz). She had digestive and respiratory problems, together with a brain hemorrhage.