Founded in 1999, Prolacta Bioscience is the leading provider of human milk-based neonatal nutritional products to hospital neonatal intensive care units (NICUs), and is the first and only company to offer a complete line of nutritional and caloric fortifi
Prolacta Bioscience is a privately-held life sciences company dedicated to Advancing the Science of Human Milk to bring the healing power of breast milk to the most critically ill infants in neonatal care. Prolacta’s human milk-based neonatal nutritional products are changing the standard of care for preemies in hospitals nationwide.
When used as part of an exclusive human milk diet (EHMD)(1), Prolacta Bioscience’s neonatal nutritional products are clinically proven to improve health outcomes(2,3,4) and reduce hospital costs(5,6) for critically ill, extremely premature infants in the NICU weighing between 500- 1,250g (1 lb 1 oz to 2 lbs 12 oz) at birth, as compared to cow milk-based fortifier or preterm formula.
Prolact+ H2MF®, which became available to hospitals by prescription in 2006, remains the first and only Human Milk Fortifier (HMF) made from 100 percent donor breast milk, instead of cow milk.
Prolacta leads the industry in the quality and safety of donor breast milk, operating the first and only pharmaceutical-grade manufacturing facility for the processing of human milk. The 67,000 sq ft human milk processing facility is located in the City of Industry, Calif., and houses the world’s largest human milk freezer.
References:
1. An EHMD is when 100% of the protein, fat and carbohydrates in an infant’s intake are derived solely from human milk.
2 Sullivan S, et al. An Exclusively Human Milk-Based Diet is Associated with a Lower Rate of Necrotizing Enterocolitis than a Diet of Human Milk and Bovine Milk-Based Products. The Journal of Pediatrics. April 2010. 156(4):562-567. doi: 10.1016/j.jpeds.2009.10.040. The randomized study of 207 infants weighing 500-1,250g compared the benefits of an exclusive human milk diet with a diet of both human milk-based and cow milk-based products.
3. Cristofalo EA, et al. Randomized Trial of Exclusive Human Milk versus Preterm Formula Diets in Extremely Premature Infants. The Journal of Pediatrics. December 2013. 163(6):1592-1595. doi: 10.1016/j.jpeds.2013.07.011. The multicenter randomized controlled study examined 53 extremely premature infants weighing 500-1250g who were fed either a bovine milk-based preterm formula or an exclusive human milk diet, comparing the duration of parenteral nutrition, growth and morbidity.
4. Abrams SA, et al. Greater Mortality and Morbidity in Extremely Preterm Infants Fed a Diet Containing Cow Milk Protein Products. Breastfeeding Medicine. June 2014. 9(6): 281-0285. doi:10.1089/bfm.2014.0024. This cohort study included 260 extremely preterm infants born weighing less than 1,250g who received a diet that ranged from 100% cow milk to 100% human milk.
5. Ganapathy V, et al. Costs of Necrotizing Enterocolitis and Cost-Effectiveness of Exclusively Human Milk-Based Products in Feeding Extremely Premature Infants. Breastfeeding Medicine. February 2012. 7(1):29-37. doi: 10.1089/bfm.2011.0002. This cost-effectiveness analysis of 2,560 extremely premature infants less than 28 weeks gestational age in 257 hospitals nationwide, comparing the impact of an exclusive human milk diet composed of mother’s milk fortified with a human milk-based fortifier versus mother’s milk fortified with cow milk-based fortifier.
6. Assad M, et al. Decreased Cost and Improved Feeding Tolerance in VLBW Infants Fed an Exclusive Human Milk Diet. Journal of Perinatology. March 2016. 36:216-220. doi: 10.1038/jp.2015.168. The study retrospectively looked at 293 preterm infants between gestational ages of 23 to 34 weeks and birth weights between 490-1,700g in the Level III NICU. The study compared the clinical and financial impacts between infants that were fed an exclusive human milk diet; cow milk-based fortifier and maternal milk; mixed combination of maternal milk, cow milk-based fortifier and cow milk-based formula; and formula between March 2009 and March 2014.
