DUARTE, Calif., Oct. 25, 2018 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Prolacta Bioscience, the nation’s leading provider of human milk-based neonatal nutritional products to hospitals, will participate in a panel discussion exploring issues related to congenital heart defects (CHD), especially single ventricle cardiac physiology, in newborn patients during the National Coalition for Infant Health (NCfIH) Policy Summit on Oct. 25, 2018. Prolacta is a sponsor of the summit, which will be held at the Willard InterContinental Hotel in Washington, D.C.
The summit will kick off with a focus on CHD, including a panel and discussion entitled “Food for the Heart: Human Milk & Single Ventricle Physiology,” which will feature:
- Parent Advocate Jodi Lemacks, national program director for Mended Little Hearts (MLH), the largest organization in the world that provides support for families of babies born with CHD
- David Rechtman, M.D., Prolacta’s vice president for medical affairs
Dr. Rechtman will share information about the clinical ramifications of heart defects and the potential benefits of an exclusive human milk diet (EHMD)i for this infant population. He will also discuss the clinical trial Prolacta is conducting to evaluate the impact of an EHMD including a human milk-based specialty fortifier on term infants undergoing surgery to address a serious heart defect known as single ventricle cardiac physiology, a set of conditions in which the heart has only one ventricle, or lower pumping chamber. The randomized controlled study is looking at how growth and clinical outcomes are affected when human milk mixed with this first-of-its-kind specialty fortifier is provided in the immediate post-surgical period and for 30 days thereafter.
“Prolacta has been at the forefront of advocating for an exclusive human milk diet as the best option for nourishing the youngest and most vulnerable patients,” said Dr. Mitchell Goldstein, NCfIH medical director and a practicing neonatologist and professor of pediatrics at Loma Linda University. “The National Coalition for Infant Health joins Prolacta in advocating for an EHMD as the standard of care for premature infants, especially those born weighing less than 1,500 g (3 lb 5 oz) and facing added health conditions like CHD.”
Now in its fourth year, the summit provides an opportunity for healthcare professionals, patient advocates, parents, congressional leaders and staff, and representatives from national nursing and physician organizations and preemie parent groups to discuss issues facing vulnerable infants and their families. Other topics this year include the impact of respiratory syncytial virus, hospital tubing safety, and the challenges associated with late preterm births.
“Prolacta is proud to be a partner again this year with the National Coalition for Infant Health for this important meeting to help advocate for and improve care for our smallest and most fragile patients,” said Scott Elster, president and CEO of Prolacta Bioscience.
About Prolacta Bioscience
Prolacta Bioscience, Inc. is a privately-held life sciences company dedicated to Advancing the Science of Human Milk®. The company pioneered the development of human milk-based neonatal nutritional products to meet the needs of critically ill, premature infants in the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU). Prolacta leads the industry in the quality and safety of nutritional products made from donor breast milk and operates the first and only pharmaceutical-grade manufacturing facility for the processing of human breast milk.
i An exclusive human milk diet (EHMD) is achieved when 100 percent of the protein, fat and carbohydrates in an infant’s diet are derived from human milk. This diet includes a human milk-based human milk fortifier.