Children born preterm and full term have similar rates of feeding problems at three years of age

Abstract

Using a parental report instrument showed that the prevalence of feeding problems in three-year-old preterm children was low and similar to that of term children.

Feeding: an important, complex skill that impacts nutritional, social, motor and sensory experiences

“…The recent article by Nieuwenhuis and colleagues investigated the prevalence of feeding problems in the Netherlands among a sample of preterm infants born <32 weeks' gestation compared to a sample of full‐term infants at the age of 3 years . Contrary to previous studies that report an incidence of feeding problems of 23% or higher among very preterm infants , there was a low incidence of feeding problems, with only 11% of preterm infants and 15% of full‐term infants experiencing feeding challenges in the current study.…”

Fewer feeding problems indicate improving neurobehavioral outcome in ex‐preemies

“…In this issue of Acta Paediatrica , Nieuwenhuis et al. report a similar low prevalence of feeding problems among three‐year‐old preterm infants born at less than 32 weeks of gestation and a control group of full‐term infants. Feeding problems were identified with a validated Dutch parent questionnaire and were not related to medical problems in the NICU, such as bronchopulmonary dysplasia, small‐for‐gestational age, necrotizing enterocolitis, brain injury and mechanical ventilation.…”

Development of feeding skills in preterm infants: a critical literature review

“…Nieuwenhuis et al 16 used the Screeningslijst Eetgedrag Peuters (SEP), which is a validated Dutch version of the Montreal Children's Hospital Feeding Scale. This questionnaire consisted of 14 items that reflected symptoms that could be present in the feeding process, like oral motor behaviors or oral sensorial behaviors and appetite.…”

“…Neuwenhuis et al 16 found that, at 3 years old, 11% of preterm infants had difficulty feeding. The latter is similar to what was mentioned by Jonsson et al 9 , where 7.41% of the children presented feeding problems at 3 years old, as can be seen in Table 6.…”

“…These differences would continue to be present, with preterm infants having twice the risk of feeding problems 13,15 , 23% of them presenting with feeding difficulties, which would decrease at 3 years old to 7.41% -11% 9,16,17 . In addition, parents report that there is a higher percentage of atypical behaviors during feeding, with rejection of foods that require chewing 13 in accordance with the experience of chewing and the development of oral motor skills produced in the first year of life, rejection that McGrath et al 29 associate with hospitalizations and manipulations to which preterm children are subjected to at birth.…”