Background: Feeding intolerance is a common problem among premature infants. There is limited information on the safety and effects of oral probiotic supplements, especially products containing Lactobacillus reuteri, and the incidence of necrotizing enterocolitis (NEC) in low birth weight preterm infants. This study aimed to evaluate the effects of Lactobacillus reuteri on the gastrointestinal ...

Feeding through a gastrostomy button (GB) provides benefits to the families of children on chronic dialysis. But data on the transition to oral feeding following renal transplantation--especially in children under 2--is scarce. Here, we report our experience of more than 14 years in 22 children who were GB fed at under 5 years of age (median age: 1.66 years; range: 0.25-4.25 years). We excluded...

INTRODUCTION Every year, a large number of patients with dysphagia are placed on feeding tubes to prevent aspiration pneumonia. This prospective study was planned to compare the incidence of aspiration pneumonia and death in patients with dysphagia who were either fed orally or through a nasogastric tube. METHODS All patients aged 65 years or older, at the point of discharge from the geriatri...

OBJECTIVE To examine the effect of neonatal intensive care unit environmental characteristics (perceived levels of light and sound, and time of day) in open unit wards and single-family rooms (SFRs) on oral feeding outcomes in preterm infants. DESIGN Data were collected at each scheduled oral feeding for 87 preterm infants from the first oral feeding until discharge. Data included the prescri...

Intervention 44 infants were allocated to a semidemand feeding protocol. 10 minutes of non-nutritive sucking (NNS) were provided every 3 hours, followed up by an assessment of behavioural state (modified Anderson Behavioral State scale). If the infant was judged to be in a state of restlessness or wakefulness (scores >3), an oral feeding was offered. If the infant was in a sleep state, he was a...

Background: feeding/eating disorders are frequent in pediatric patients and, in some cases, can be associated to an upper digestive motility disorder. Gastro-esophageal reflux is, nowadays, considered a risk factor for the development of feeding/eating disorders. Aim: to verify the occurrence of feeding/eating disorders in patients with Gastro-Esophageal Reflux Disease (GERD) determined by the ...

Bingham, P., Ashikaga, T. & Abbasi, S. (2010). Prospective study of non-nutritive sucking and feeding skills in premature infants. Archives of Disease in Childhood, Fetal Neonatal Edition, 95(3): F 194-200. Kirk, A., Alder, S. & King, J. (2007). Cue-based oral feeding clinical pathway results in earlier attainment of full oral feeding in premature infants. Journal of Perinatology, 27: 572-578. ...

INTRODUCTION The usefulness of qualitative or quantitative volumetric magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) in early detection of brain structural changes and prediction of adverse outcomes in neonatal illnesses warrants further investigation. Our aim was to correlate certain brain injuries and the brain volume of feeding-related cortical and subcortical regions with feeding method at discharge amon...