Abstract
Nonnutritive and nutritive suck were compared to nasogastric gavage feeding in 10 preterm infants (33-36 wks) to determine the effect of suck and swallow on gastric emptying patterns. We used a 10% dextrose meal with phenol red marker (22 ml/kg) to determine gastric emptying, based on a double sampling technique, at 10-minute intervals for a 30-minute test period. A cross-over study design compared the effects of the three feeding methods (order randomly assigned) in each infant. When emptying patterns were compared, nasogastric feeding led to a more consistent emptying trend, with 20- and 30-minute residual volumes significantly decreased from 10-minute values (p<0.01). Nonnutritive and nutritive suck caused greater variability in the emptying pattern, particularly at the 20-minute sampling period, with significant reductions in gastric residuals by 30 minutes (p<0.01). However, the gastric residual volumes (ml/kg), which reflect gastric emptying pattern, did not differ significantly when comparisons were made among groups at 10, 20, and 30 minutes following the test meal. Nonnutritive and nutritive suck and swallow of a liquid dextrose meal does not significantly improve gastric motility and emptying in preterm infants; thus, the beneficial effect of suck and swallow on the nutritional status of preterm infants, demonstrated by others, is not related to improved gastric evacuation of feeds.
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