Sucking performance of babies with cleft conditions.

OBJECTIVE

To describe the sucking performance of bottle-fed babies with cleft conditions.

PARTICIPANTS

Forty 2-week-old-babies with cleft lip (CL; n = 8), cleft palate (CP; n = 22), and cleft lip and palate (CLP; n = 10) were examined.

METHODS

Suction, compression, and other sucking parameters were measured during bottle-feeding and compared to determine if they varied with cleft condition or feeding ability.

RESULTS

All babies with CL and one with CLP demonstrated suction. Thirteen of 22 babies with CP demonstrated suction but only three maintained regular pressure changes over time. Between-group differences in the amplitude of suction and compression were associated with cleft condition. Cleft lip participants demonstrated the greatest amplitude of suction followed by those with CP and CLP. Cleft lip and CP participants generated similar amplitudes of compression. This was greater than their counterparts with CLP. Good feeders (n = 15) generated high levels of suction, while satisfactory (n = 15) and poor feeders (n = 10) did not generate any during bottle-feeding.

CONCLUSION

Between-group differences in intra-oral pressures were confirmed when babies were examined by cleft condition. Babies with smaller clefts (i.e., CL or minor soft palate clefts) were more likely to generate normal levels of suction and compression compared to their counterparts with larger clefts. Since good feeders were more likely to have smaller clefts it was not surprising that they demonstrated higher suction pressures than babies with satisfactory or poor feeding ability. Compression values were not significantly different across the feeding ability groups. These data may inform feeding management strategies.