Indicators of oxytocin level in blood serum of newborns taking into account the type of feeding

• Published in: Siberian Medical Review no. 5; pp. 76 - 80
• Main Authors: Ovchinnikova, T.V., Lopatina, O.L., Taranushenko, T.E., Salmina, A.B., Salmin, V.V., Karpova, L.S., Golubenko, N.K.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: 2022
• ISSN: 1819-9496; 2500-0136
• DOI: 10.20333/25000136-2022-5-76-80

The aim of the research. To analyse the level of oxytocin in the blood serum of premature and full-term newborns in various types of feeding (according to the Department of Pathology of Newborns and Premature Infants of the Krasnoyarsk Regional Clinical Center for Maternal and Child Health). Material and methods. A single-centre open-label prospective study including 24 preterm infants (at 26 to 36 weeks of gestation) and 14 full-term newborns was carried out. The levels of oxytocin in the blood serum of the examined children on various types of feeding (breastfeeding and artificial) were analysed in dynamics on days 5-6 and 11-12. Results. It has been established that among full-term children, the average values of oxytocin did not have significant differences between the subgroups of breastfeeding and artificial feeding and significantly exceeded the levels of oxytocin in premature infants. The most likely reason for the low level of OT should be considered the higher vulnerability to multiple external influences (examinations and manipulations, temperature, humidity, incubator conditions, care specifics, etc.) that accompany newborns with a small gestational age. Suppression of OT secretion at the stage of the general adaptation syndrome may be due to a pronounced activation of the sympathetic-adrenal system in premature infants in response to the stress situation with an increase in the level of adrenaline and norepinephrine. Analysis of the level of OT in premature infants in various types of feeding depending on body weight at birth in BF and AF showed an inverse relationship between the level of the studied hormone and body weight at birth (the lower the birth weight, the higher the level of OT on the 5th-6th day of postnatal life). Conclusion. In modern literature, data on the physiological effects of oxytocin and the participation of the hormone in the course of a number of pathologies are being actively updated. New findings from recent studies point to the role of oxytocin not only in labour but also in multiple effects on the fetus and newborns. Maternal oxytocin can reach fetal neurons across both the placental and blood-brain barriers. At the same time, the physiological significance of the influence of oxytocin on the brain and the dependence on the type of feeding in newborns are insufficiently studied and are a subject of discussion, but mainly in experimental studies