Breast milk and cow's milk differ in multiple characteristics that account for a faster gastric emptying time after breast feeding. This faster gastric emptying may be associated with a faster gallbladder emptying. Our aim was to compare gallbladder contraction after breast milk meal and cow's milk meal using ultrasound examination. We studied 22 infants after a breast milk meal and 25 infants after a cow's milk meal. Gallbladder volume was measured after a 4-6 hours fasting and one hour after the meal (breast milk or cow's milk). Gallbladder contractility was calculated by determining the difference between gallbladder volume one hour after the meal and the fasting volume, and expressed as a percentage of the fasting volume. The gallbladder contractility medians for breast milk and cow's milk were 92.25% and 53.8%, respectively (p < 0.001). We concluded that gallbladder contraction after a breast milk meal is much faster than that after cow's milk meal.
Gallbladder contraction; Ultrasonography; Milk
