[Surveillance of the very-low birthweight infant: growth and nutrition].

In very low birth weight (VLBW) infants careful growth and nutritional supervision are necessary in order to reduce the incidence of persistent growth retardation after 2 to 3 years of age. Recently, post-discharge formulas with higher protein, energy and mineral content has been developed with the aim to promote catch up growth and mineral accretion during the first months of life. Based upon the most recent nutritional and growth data, the authors propose guidelines for the nutrition and growth follow-up of VLBW infants after discharge from the neonatal unit.