Grab your protein shakes and take a seat, cos GNJC is back after a short hiatus!
Our amazing New Zealand neonatal colleagues are up to their usual tricks of producing great evidence around nutrition of extremely low birth weight infants.
It has been unclear whether higher parenteral amino acid intake improves outcomes in infants with extremely low birth weight.
The landmark PROVIDE study, published in N Engl J Med in 2022 (Bloomfield et al), investigated if providing additional parenteral amino acids improved survival free from neurodisability at 2 years, which it did not.
Now, HOT OFF THE PRESS in Pediatrics (July 2026), we present the latest on this cohort:
The New Zealand team have followed these children to 6-7 years old to assess effects on neurocognitive function, lean mass, muscle strength and general health.
Join us as Shiraz Badurdeen reviews the paper, we interview the senior author A/Prof Chris McKinlay (Auckland, NZ), and then Ju Lee Oei, Shiraz and I are joined on our live panel by PROVIDE senior author Prof. Barbara Cormack (Auckland) and nutrition expert (and key ESPHGAN member) Dr Chris van den Akker (Amsterdam, Netherlands).
And then keep your diaries clear for Wednesday September 30th for another GNJC - if all goes to plan it will be a HUGE topic, even hotter off the press!
RegisterMiss this great Global Neonatal Journal Club? We have you covered! Watch now via the link here.
Password: GNJC
Prof Barbara Cormack has a PhD in Perinatal Science and MHSc (first class honours) from the Liggins Institute, University of Auckland. She works clinically as a specialist neonatal dietitian and is Clinical Lead for the team of the paediatric dietitians at Starship Child Health, Auckland City Hospital, New Zealand. Barbara was appointed Senior Research Fellow at the Liggins Institute in 2020.
Dr Chris van den Akker is a Consultant Neonatologist at Amsterdam UMC – Emma Children’s Hospital, specializing in neonatal nutrition, metabolism, and intensive care. He has been actively involved in neonatal research since 2005, focusing on fetal and neonatal protein metabolism, lipid metabolism, human milk, and probiotics. His work integrates clinical neonatology with advanced nutritional research, ensuring that preterm and critically ill newborns receive optimal nutritional support. He has contributed to studies on human milk fortification, metabolic adaptations in neonates, and the role of probiotics in neonatal gut health, shaping best practices in neonatal intensive care.
