Anemia of Prematurity and Oral Feeding Milestones in Premature Infants

Author(s):  
Sreekanth Viswanathan ◽  
Sudarshan Jadcherla

Abstract Objective Anemia of prematurity (AOP) and oral feeding problems are common in premature infants. This study aimed to determine the influence of AOP on aerodigestive outcomes and the duration to full Per Oral (PO). Study Design Prospectively collected data on premature infants who initiated oral feeds at ≤ 34 weeks' postmenstrual age were examined. Infants were categorized into “AOP+” and “AOP−” based on hematocrit at initial PO, that is, < 29 or ≥ 29%. Results Forty-four infants in AOP+ compared with 74 in AOP−. AOP+ infants had lower birth gestation and weight (p < 0.001). The anthropometrics at initial PO were similar. AOP+ had lower mean hematocrit and higher oxygen need at initial PO, and at full PO (p < 0.05). AOP+ reached full PO at a later gestation and took longer days from initial PO to full PO (p < 0.01). BPD, intraventricular hemorrhage (IVH ≤ 2), and hospital stay were greater in the AOP+ (p < 0.05). After adjusting for covariates, initial PO hematocrit was not predictive of time to full PO [hazard ratio 1.3 (CI 0.88–2.0), p = 0.18]. Conclusion AOP is not independently associated with the duration to full PO. Supplemental oxygen for associated comorbidities may have compensated for the underlying anemia.

2021 ◽  
Vol 14 (3) ◽  
pp. 379-387
Author(s):  
Alireza Alidad ◽  
Maryam Tarameshlu ◽  
Leila Ghelichi ◽  
Hamid Haghani

PURPOSE: Feeding problems are common in premature infants (PIs) and may lead to negative consequences such as malnutrition, dehydration, excessive weight loss, as well as developmental and psychological deficits. Moreover, they are associated with increased length of hospital stay/cost. There is not enough evidence on how feeding problems should be treated in PIs. The goal of this study was to investigate the effects of non-nutritive sucking combined with oral motor stimulation and oral support on feeding performance in PIs. METHODS: A single-blind randomized clinical trial was performed on 44 PIs with feeding problems. Patients were randomly categorized into two groups: (1) combined intervention (CI) and (2) non-nutritive sucking (NNS). The CI group received NNS, oral motor stimulation and oral support simultaneously. Infants in both groups received 14 treatment sessions for 14 consecutive days. The Preterm Oral Feeding Readiness Assessment Scale (POFRAS) was used as the primary outcome measure. Weight, volume of milk intake, time to achieve full oral feeding, and length of hospital stay were secondary outcome measures. All measures were assessed before treatment, after the 7th session, after the 14th session, and after 7 days after the end of treatment. RESULTS: Both groups improved in all outcome measures across time (P < 0.001). The improvements in the POFRAS, volume of milk intake, and time to achieve full oral feeding were significantly greater in the CI group than the NNS group (P < 0.001). The improvements attained in weight and length of hospital stay were not significantly different between the CI and NNS groups (P > 0.05). Large effect sizes were found for POFRAS score in both CI (d = 3.98) and NNS (d = 2.19) groups. CONCLUSION: The current study showed that the combined intervention including NNS, oral motor stimulation, and oral support significantly improved the feeding performance in PIs.


2002 ◽  
Vol 21 (2) ◽  
pp. 51-57 ◽  
Author(s):  
Martha Wilson Jones ◽  
Elaine Morgan ◽  
Jean Shelton

FEEDING DISORDERS AND dysphagia are common problems seen in premature infants following their discharge from the NICU. A major factor in the growing incidence of these problems is the number of infants born and surviving between 23 and 25 weeks gestational age, which has increased dramatically over the past decade. These infants experience both a lengthier exposure to noxious oral stimuli and a longer time until they develop the suck/swallow coordination that makes oral feeding safe.1 Oral feeding is generally not offered before 32–34 weeks gestational age, when the preterm infant’s sucking pattern begins to resemble that of a term infant.2,3 Therefore, there may be an 8- to 9-week lag between birth and oral feedings in a 23- or 24-week gestational age infant.


2014 ◽  
Vol 7 (1) ◽  
pp. 5-11
Author(s):  
Sedigheh Iranmanesh ◽  
Atefeh Shamsi ◽  
Batool pour Aboli ◽  
Zeinab Movahedi

Author(s):  
Emily Anderson ◽  
Matthew Gregoski ◽  
Daniel Gehle ◽  
William Head ◽  
Thomas Hardy ◽  
...  

Background: Premature infants who cannot achieve full oral feeds may need a gastrostomy tube (GT) to be discharged from the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU). We previously developed a model to predict which infants born <30 weeks (w) gestational age (GA) will require a GT before discharge. Here we report the detailed respiratory variable data to describe the general respiratory course for infants in the NICU <30w GA at birth and the association between different levels of respiratory support with postmenstrual age (PMA) at the time of first oral feeding attempt (PMAff), including later need for GT for discharge. Methods: Retrospective chart review of 391 NICU admissions comprising test (2015-2016) and validation (2017-2018) cohorts. Data, including respiratory support, were collected on 204 infants, 41 GT and 163 non-GT, in the test cohort, and 187 infants, 37 GT and 150 non-GT, in the validation cohort. Results: Respiratory data were significantly different between GT and non-GT infants. Infants who required GT for discharge were on significantly higher respiratory support at 30 days of age, 32w PMA, and 36w PMA. Respiratory parameters were highly correlated with PMAff. Conclusion: Respiratory status predicts PMAff, which was the variable in our previously described model that was most predictive of failure to achieve full oral feeing. These data provide a catalyst to develop strategies for improving oral feeding outcome for infants requiring prolonged respiratory support in the NICU.


CoDAS ◽  
2015 ◽  
Vol 27 (4) ◽  
pp. 378-383
Author(s):  
Camila Lehnhart Vargas ◽  
Luana Cristina Berwig ◽  
Eduardo Matias dos Santos Steidl ◽  
Leila Sauer Prade ◽  
Geovana Bolzan ◽  
...  

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the influence of oral motor skills of premature infants on their oral feeding performance and growth, during neonatal hospitalization.METHODS: Fifty-one newborns hospitalized in the neonatal intensive care unit of a hospital in Southern Brazil, between July 2012 and March 2013, were evaluated. The evaluation of oral feeding skills, according to Lau and Smith, was applied after prescription for starting oral feeding. The oral feeding performance was analyzed using the following variables: days taken to start independent oral feeding and hospital discharge. Growth was measured by weight, length, and head circumference, using the curves of Fenton, at birth, first and independent oral feeding, and hospital discharge.RESULTS: At birth, 71% preterm infants were proper for gestational age, most of them were males (53%), with average of 33.6 (±1.5) weeks of gestational age. The gestational age in the assessment did not influence the oral feeding performance of the premature infant and did not differ between levels. Time of transition from tube feeding to oral feeding and hospital stay was shorter when the oral skills were higher. At birth, there was a tendency of low weight and low oral feeding performance. Level IV premature infants in the release of oral feeding presented higher weights.CONCLUSION: The level of oral skills of the premature infant interfered positively on time of feeding transition from tube to independent oral feeding and hospital stay. Growth, represented by weight gain, was not affected by the level of oral skill.


2020 ◽  
Vol 7 (5) ◽  
pp. 1551
Author(s):  
Arnab Mandal ◽  
Arindam Ghosh ◽  
Sabyasachi Bakshi

Background: With the establishment of laparoscopic cholecystectomy as gold standard management of cholelithiasis, the current stress is being given on increasing patient safety and reducing the post-operative morbidity associated with this procedure. An emerging trend is to use of low-pressure pneumoperitoneum in an attempt to lower the impact of pneumoperitoneum while providing adequate working space.Methods: In this prospective randomized study 66 participants were allocated into two arms i.e. low-pressure pneumoperitoneum (LPP) and standard pressure pneumoperitoneum (SPP). The necessary data were collected using laboratory investigations, clinical examination and perioperative findings. Data were analyzed using suitable statistical software.Results: Mean duration of surgery, surgical difficulty and field visualization difficulty were insignificantly greaterin LPP group than SPP group. CO2 consumption was significantly less in LPP. Incidence of bile spillage, usage of drain was insignificantly increased in LPP. Post-operative pain was significantly greater in SPP group. Time for per oral tolerance of food and incidence of nausea were significantly greater in SPP group. Standard pressure group needed significantly more tramadol injection than LPP. There were no significant haemodynamic changes in SPP group compared to LPP group. Length of hospital stay was significantly greater in SPP.Conclusions: Laparoscopic cholecystectomy in low pressure pneumoperitoneum is safe and feasible. Intra-operative complications like operative field visualization, operative difficulties, conversion rates, duration of surgery are not affected moreover, low-pressure pneumoperitoneum, decreases consumption of intra-operative CO2, post-operative pain, shoulder tip pain, need of analgesia, nausea and promotes early per oral feeding, thus reduces hospital stay. 


2021 ◽  
Vol 9 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ira H. Gewolb ◽  
Babatunde T. Sobowale ◽  
Frank L. Vice ◽  
Abhijit Patwardhan ◽  
Nino Solomonia ◽  
...  

Background: Suck-swallow rhythmicity and the integration of breathing into infant feeding are developmentally regulated. Neurological injury and breathing abnormalities can both impact feeding in preterm infants.Objective: To determine the effects of neurologic injury independent of effects of disordered breathing on feeding biorhythms in premature infants.Methods: Low-risk preterm infants (LRP), infants with Grade 3–4 Intraventricular Hemorrhage (IVH), those with bronchopulmonary dysplasia (BPD), and those with both BPD and IVH (BPD+IVH) were identified. Forty-seven infants, 32–42 weeks Postmenstrual Age (PMA) were evaluated on one or more occasions (131 studies). Of these, 39 infants (81 studies) were performed at &gt;35 weeks PMA. Coefficient of variation (COV) (=standard deviation of the inter-event (e.g., suck-suck, swallow-breath, etc.) interval divided by the mean of the interval) was used to quantify rhythmic stability.Results: To adjust for PMA, only those infants &gt;35–42 weeks were compared. Suck-suck COV was significantly lower (more rhythmically stable) in the LRP group [COV = 0.274 ± 0.051 (S.D.)] compared to all other groups (BPD = 0.325 ± 0.066; IVH = 0.342 ± 0.072; BPD + IVH = 0.314 ± 0.069; all p &lt; 0.05). Similarly, suck-swallow COV was significantly lower in LRP babies (0.360 ± 0.066) compared to the BPD group (0.475 ± 0.113) and the IVH cohort (0.428 ± 0.075) (p &lt; 0.05). The BPD+IVH group (0.424 ± 0.109), while higher, was not quite statistically significant.Conclusions: Severe IVH negatively impacts suck-suck and suck-swallow rhythms. The independent effect of neurological injury in the form of IVH on feeding rhythms suggests that quantitative analysis of feeding may reflect and predict neurological sequelae.


2018 ◽  
Vol 35 (10) ◽  
pp. 959-963
Author(s):  
Andrew Heling ◽  
Matthew Laughon ◽  
Wayne Price

Objective This article assesses whether routine, screening head ultrasound (HUS) studies performed at 7 to 14 postnatal days for premature infants are followed by clinical interventions. Study Design This retrospective cohort study included all inborn infants delivered at < 30 weeks' gestational age (GA) between January 1, 2012 and December 31, 2015 at a single center who had a routine, screening HUS performed between 7 and 14 postnatal days (n = 303). We defined “clinical intervention” as a 7 to 14 postnatal day HUS that was followed by neurosurgical intervention prior to a 36- to 40-week postmenstrual age (PMA) HUS or elective withdrawal of critical care within 30 days of a positive HUS finding. Results Four infants (1.3%) had neurosurgical intervention prior to a 36- to 40-week PMA HUS; all four had a diagnostic HUS performed prior to postnatal day 7 to assess for an intraventricular hemorrhage (IVH) due to clinical instability. No infant had critical care electively withdrawn following a 7 to 14 postnatal day HUS. Conclusion Clinical intervention rarely followed routine, screening HUS studies performed at 7 to 14 postnatal days for inborn infants delivered at < 30 weeks' GA. In no case did clinical intervention related to HUS results occur when a 7 to 14 postnatal day HUS was the initial HUS performed.


Neonatology ◽  
2021 ◽  
pp. 1-9
Author(s):  
Matthias Fröhlich ◽  
Tatjana Tissen-Diabaté ◽  
Christoph Bührer ◽  
Stephanie Roll

<b><i>Introduction:</i></b> In very low birth weight (&#x3c;1,500 g, VLBW) infants, morbidity and mortality have decreased substantially during the past decades, and both are known to be lower in girls than in boys. In this study, we assessed sex-specific changes over time in length of hospital stay (LOHS) and postmenstrual age at discharge (PAD), in addition to survival in VLBW infants. <b><i>Methods:</i></b> This is a single-center retrospective cohort analysis based on quality assurance data of VLBW infants born from 1978 to 2018. Estimation of sex-specific LOHS over time was based on infants discharged home from neonatal care or deceased. Estimation of sex-specific PAD over time was based on infants discharged home exclusively. Analysis of in-hospital survival was performed for all VLBW infants. <b><i>Results:</i></b> In 4,336 of 4,499 VLBW infants admitted from 1978 to 2018 with complete data (96.4%), survival rates improved between 1978–1982 and 1993–1997 (70.8 vs. 88.3%; hazard ratio (HR) 0.20, 95% confidence interval 0.14, 0.30) and remained stable thereafter. Boys had consistently higher mortality rates than girls (15 vs. 12%, HR 1.23 [1.05, 1.45]). Nonsurviving boys died later compared to nonsurviving girls (adjusted mean survival time 23.0 [18.0, 27.9] vs. 20.7 [15.0, 26.3] days). LOHS and PAD assessed in 3,166 survivors displayed a continuous decrease over time (1978–1982 vs. 2013–2018: LOHS days 82.9 [79.3, 86.5] vs. 60.3 [58.4, 62.1] days); PAD 40.4 (39.9, 40.9) vs. 37.4 [37.1, 37.6] weeks). Girls had shorter LOHS than boys (69.4 [68.0, 70.8] vs. 73.0 [71.6, 74.4] days) and were discharged with lower PAD (38.6 [38.4, 38.8] vs. 39.2 [39.0, 39.4] weeks). <b><i>Discussion/Conclusions:</i></b> LOHS and PAD decreased over the last 40 years, while survival rates improved. Male sex was associated with longer LOHS, higher PAD, and higher mortality rates.


2021 ◽  
Vol 19 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Kazuyoshi Kato ◽  
Kohei Omatsu ◽  
Sanshiro Okamoto ◽  
Maki Matoda ◽  
Hidetaka Nomura ◽  
...  

Abstract Background The aim of this study was to investigate the safety and clinical usefulness of early oral feeding (EOF) after rectosigmoid resection with anastomosis for the treatment of primary ovarian cancer. Methods We performed a retrospective review of all consecutive patients who had undergone rectosigmoid resection with anastomosis for primary ovarian, tubal, or peritoneal cancer between April 2012 and March 2019 in a single institution. Patient-related, disease-related, and surgery-related data including the incidence of anastomotic leakage and postoperative hospital stay were collected. EOF was introduced as a postoperative oral feeding protocol in September 2016. Before the introduction of EOF, conventional oral feeding (COF) had been used. Results Two hundred and one patients who underwent rectosigmoid resection with anastomosis, comprised of 95 patients in the COF group and 106 patients in the EOF group, were included in this study. The median number of postoperative days until the start of diet intake was 5 (range 2–8) in the COF group and 2 (range 2–8) in the EOF group (P < 0.001). Postoperative morbidity was equivalent between the groups. The incidence of anastomotic leakage was similar (1%) in both groups. The median length of the postoperative hospital stay was reduced by 6 days for the EOF group: 17 (range 9–67) days for the COF group versus 11 (8–49) days for the EOF group (P < 0.001). Conclusion EOF provides a significant reduction in the length of the postoperative hospital stay without an increased complication risk after rectosigmoid resection with anastomosis as a part of cytoreductive surgery for primary ovarian cancer.


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