A Crucial Step by Dr. Abidi Pharmaceuticals to Save Neonatal Lives: Inauguration of the Human Milk Bank at Mofid Children’s Hospital

In profound alignment with its Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) initiatives and an unwavering commitment to elevating public health, Dr. Abidi Pharmaceuticals proudly sponsored the inauguration of the Human Milk Bank at Mofid Children’s Hospital in Tehran on Wednesday, Mehr 25 (mid-October). This pivotal milestone represents a critical intervention in safeguarding neonatal health and paving the way for a healthier future generation.

The Clinical Imperative for Human Milk Banks

Breast milk remains the unsurpassed gold standard of nutrition for newborns, particularly for premature and critically ill neonates. Due to various medical complexities—such as premature birth, Low Birth Weight (LBW), maternal illnesses, surgical interventions, or insufficient maternal lactation—many infants are unable to breastfeed directly.

Human milk banks address this severe nutritional void by collecting donated breast milk from healthy, lactating mothers. Following rigorous clinical screening and strict pasteurization protocols, the donor milk is administered to vulnerable infants for whom breast milk is a medical necessity. The clinical benefits of establishing such facilities are immense: they save neonatal lives, bolster immature immune systems, facilitate optimal physical growth, and ultimately reduce long-term healthcare expenditures.

When highly vulnerable neonates—often weighing less than 1.5 kilograms due to extreme prematurity or requiring surgical intervention at birth—are admitted to the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU), their gastrointestinal tracts are clinically unprepared to tolerate synthetic formula. If maternal milk is unavailable, these infants face exponentially higher risks of systemic infections, severe gastrointestinal complications such as Necrotizing Enterocolitis (NEC), and elevated mortality rates. Under these critical circumstances, the administration of pasteurized donor human milk is globally recognized as the only safe and viable intervention to preserve their lives.

Eligibility for Breast Milk Donation

Mothers experiencing hyperlactation (producing breast milk in excess of their own infant’s daily requirements) often resort to expressing and discarding the surplus. By voluntarily donating this invaluable resource to human milk banks, these mothers can directly serve as lifesavers for medically fragile neonates in critical care environments.

Sponsorship and Infrastructure of the Mofid Hospital Human Milk Bank

Historically, the world’s first human milk bank was established in Austria. Today, the global clinical network encompasses nearly 600 operational banks. Currently, the European continent hosts 210 facilities, while Brazil alone operates an impressive 222 human milk banks.

In Iran, the pioneer human milk bank was inaugurated in July 2016 (Tir 1395) at Al-Zahra Hospital, affiliated with Tabriz University of Medical Sciences. The nation now benefits from a vital network of thirteen active human milk banks. The capital city, Tehran, previously housed two facilities located at Akbar-Abadi and Vali-e-Asr Hospitals.

Today, the fourteenth national human milk bank—which serves as Tehran’s third facility and the very first under the auspices of Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences—has officially opened at Mofid Children’s Hospital. This state-of-the-art facility was fully supported and equipped by Dr. Abidi Pharmaceuticals, a prominent member of the Cobel Group.

For public inquiries, donor eligibility criteria, and clinical protocols, the Mofid Hospital Human Milk Bank can be contacted directly at: +98-21-22921516.

Information of Other Human Milk Banks in the Country