Changes in infant non-nutritive sucking throughout a suck sample at 3-months of age

Abstract

The goal of this study was to compare how infants' non-nutritive suck (NNS) changes throughout a suck sample. Fifty-four full-term infants (57% male) completed this study at, on average, 3.03 (SD .31) months of age. These infants sucked on our custom research pacifier for approximately five minutes. Infants produced, on average, 14.50 suck bursts during the sample. NNS data was pooled across subjects and breakpoint analyses were completed to determine if there were changes in their NNS patterning. Breakpoints were evident for NNS cycles per burst at burst numbers 18 and 34, and for amplitude (cmH 2 0) at burst numbers 18 and 29. No breakpoints were present for NNS frequency. Infants exhibit changes in their suck physiology across burst number. When assessing suck, developmental specialists should observe more than one suck burst to attain a more valid and appropriate scope of the infant's suck ability.

Non-nutritive suck and airborne metal exposures among Puerto Rican infants

“…While relatively little data are available on NNS, especially for infants residing in Puerto Rico, NNS metrics in our study participants are largely consistent with prior literature reported on infants 0–3 months ( Zimmerman and Foran, 2017 ; Zimmerman et al, 2020 ). For example, in a study of 26 full-term infants, Martens et al (2020) reported comparable ranges of NNS, with mean NNS frequency of 2.09 Hz (versus 1.9 ± 0.2 Hz in our study), mean cycles per burst of 9.6 (versus 11.5 ± 6.5 in our study), and average amplitude of 14.05 cmH 2 O (versus 17.1 ± 6.9 cmH 2 O in our study).…”

“…Two minute periods of sucking were analyzed to quantify several measures of NNS, including cycle count, amplitude (cmH 2 0), burst duration (s), frequency (Hz), bursts/min, cycles/min, and cycles/burst. A burst was defined as the group of cycles between two pauses taken by the infant for respiration ( Zimmerman et al, 2020 ).…”

“…Importantly, NNS is known to be altered in conditions associated with abnormal neurological development, including: Prematurity, respiratory distress syndrome, and small for gestational age ( Estep et al, 2008 ; Da Costa et al, 2010 ; Lau et al, 2000 ). NNS has also been linked to neonatal brain injuries, with 35–48% of infants with neonatal brain injuries having delayed NNS ( Pineda et al, 2019 ; Zimmerman et al, 2020 ), and to subsequent neurodevelopmental outcomes. For example, in one recent study, neonatal measures of NNS were associated with multiple markers of neuromuscular development, intelligence, and language at age five ( Wolthuis-Stigter et al, 2017 ).…”

Non-nutritive suck as a window into infant development: unraveling the implications of non-nutritive suck through the understanding of 1) typical non-nutritive suck patterning, 2) variations across populations (cleft lip and palate), and 3) connections to neurodevelopmental outcomes

“…These data were pooled across participants and breakpoint analyses were used to see if there were certain points throughout the sample where the NNS patterning changed. Breakpoints were found for the amplitude, or strength, of the suck and the amount of suck cycles per burst, but frequency remained stable throughout the sample(35). This aligns with prior findings ofCapilouto et al and Zimmerman et al where NNS frequency was consistent across studies, 2.02 HZ, 2.16 HZ and 2.11 Hz respectively…”

“…We hypothesized that amplitude, cycles/burst, duration, number of cycles, and number of bursts would be significantly different between the 3-and 12month timepoints, and that NNS frequency would remain relatively stable between the two timepoints. This hypothesis is based on data showing NNS frequency to be relatively stable with a NNS sample (35) and in response to sensory stimulation (8,9). We anticipated that aspects of NNS would change based on maturation and feeding experiences over the first year of life.…”