Preterm infants with gestational age inferior to 34 weeks were included in the study. A prospective experimental group received the oral stimulation protocol and the effects of the intervention were compared with a historical control group that did not receive any oral stimulation intervention. The study hypothesis is that oral stimulation in preterm infants has beneficial effects on the feeding performance, the length of hospitalization and anthropometric variables, including weight at discharge, height at discharge and head circumference at discharge.
Study Type
INTERVENTIONAL
Allocation
NON_RANDOMIZED
Purpose
TREATMENT
Masking
NONE
Enrollment
48
Manual stimulation of the cheeks (internal and external), lips, gums, tongue and palate by finger-strokin.
CEU San Pablo University
Madrid, Madrid, Spain
Gestational age at the initiation of oral feeding
Time frame: Up to 46 weeks
Weight at discharge (g)
Time frame: Up to 46 weeks
Height at discharge (cm)
Time frame: Up to 46 weeks
Head circumference at discharge (cm)
Time frame: Up to 46 weeks
Days of enteral nutrition
Time frame: Up to 46 weeks
Gestational age at discharge (weeks)
Time frame: Up to 46 weeks
Total length of hospitalization
Time frame: Up to 46 weeks
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