There is a lack of knowledge on the effect of an oral stimulation program, prior to the introduction of oral feeding, in preterm infants who are less than 30 weeks gestational age. The objective of this study was to assess whether a prefeeding oral stimulation program enhances the oral feeding performance of preterm infants born between 26--29 weeks gestational age. / A randomized trial was carried out. Thirty-two infants completed the study. The experimental group received the oral stimulation program. The control group received the sham stimulation program. The outcome measures were defined as: time to attain independent oral feeding, overall intake, rate of milk transfer (ml/min), maturation of sucking and length of stay at the hospital. / The experimental group attained independent oral feeding faster and demonstrated consistently greater overall intake and rate of milk transfer than the control group, as their oral feeding regimen was advanced. These findings are attributed in part to a more mature sucking pattern observed in the experimental group. There was no difference in length of stay at the hospital between the two groups. / This study demonstrates that an early oral stimulation program can enhance the development of sucking. This supports the concept that development of sucking is dependent on both physiological maturation and external experiences. Such a program may be included in neonatal developmental care plans because it is safe, simple and inexpensive.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:LACETR/oai:collectionscanada.gc.ca:QMM.31229 |
| Date | January 2000 |
| Creators | Fucile, Sandra. |
| Contributors | Gisel, Erika (advisor), Lau, Chantal (advisor) |
| Publisher | McGill University |
| Source Sets | Library and Archives Canada ETDs Repository / Centre d'archives des thèses électroniques de Bibliothèque et Archives Canada |
| Language | English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Electronic Thesis or Dissertation |
| Format | application/pdf |
| Coverage | Master of Science (School of Physical and Occupational Therapy.) |
| Rights | All items in eScholarship@McGill are protected by copyright with all rights reserved unless otherwise indicated. |
| Relation | alephsysno: 001802398, proquestno: MQ70425, Theses scanned by UMI/ProQuest. |
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