Relationship between feeding schedules and gastric distress during retinopathy of prematurity screening eye examinations.

PURPOSE: To determine whether a relationship exists between the timing of feeding before retinopathy of prematurity (ROP) eye examinations and gastric side effects or distress associated with this examination.

METHODS

A prospective, randomized, single-masked study was conducted involving infants in the neonatal intensive care unit who required an ROP eye examination and who received normal or full enteral feeding over a 1 year period. Infants were randomly assigned to 1 of 2 study arms: feeding 1 hour before examination (arm 1) or feeding schedule adjusted to ensure no feeding within 2 hours before examination (arm 2). Physiological data, including blood pressure and pulse rate, before, during and after examination, crying time during the examination, presence of vomiting and gastric aspirates, and gastric aspirates volume 24 hours after the examination, were recorded.

RESULTS

A total of 34 infants were enrolled, with 57 separate eye examinations conducted. There was 19% less crying (p = 0.016) in arm 1 versus arm 2. Vomiting was 3-fold less in arm 1 versus arm 2 (4.2% vs 12.5%, p = 0.38). Gastric aspirates was less in arm 1 versus arm 2 (p = 0.18). Diastolic blood pressure was lower and respiratory rate greater during the examination in arm 1 (p < 0.05), whereas pulse rate was greater at the start of the examination in arm 1 (p < 0.05).

CONCLUSIONS

Feeding neonatal intensive care unit infants 1 hour before compared with withholding feeding 2 or more hours before ROP examinations may reduce stress during the examination, as measured by percentage crying during the examination, with no increased incidence of vomiting or gastric aspirates.