Evaluation of olfactory and taste development of premature infants by near-infrared spectroscopy
Japan Society for the Promotion of Science:Grants-in-Aid for Scientific Research Grant-in-Aid for Scientific Research (C)
Date (from‐to) : 2010 -2012
Author : NISHIDA Tomoko; KUSAKA Takashi; YASUDA Saneyuki; KONISHI Yukihiko; IZICHI Sonoko
Abstract: Preterm infants are raised in the unique environment of an incubator for a long period. This environment is considerably different from that of term infants, and thisdifference could have a great impact on their neurological development. We aimed tocompare brain developmental function in the olfactory cortex between preterm and term infants by using near-infrared spectroscopy (NIRS). We also aimed to elucidate the characteristics of development in the olfactory cortex. We chose term and preterm infants with corresponding postconceptional ages and used NIRS to determine the change of cerebral blood volume upon stimulation with the breast-milk odor of their own mothers, that of other mothers and formula odor. In term infants, upon odor stimulation by other mothers, there was a negative correlation between birth date and the latency of [oxyHb] in response to odor simulation (latency). In contrast, upon odor stimulation by theirown mothers, there was a positive correlation between birth date and latency. In preterm infants, upon odor stimulation by formula, there was a negative correlation between birth date and latency. Comparing the latency between preterm and term infants adjusted for birth week, there were no significant differences with any type of stimulation.