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State of the science: feeding readiness in the preterm infant

Jacqueline M McGrath1, Ana V Bodea Braescu

  • 1College of Nursing, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ 85287, USA. jacqueline.mcgrath@asu.edu

The Journal of Perinatal & Neonatal Nursing
|January 14, 2005
PubMed

Insights

Preparing preterm infants for discharge requires focusing on feeding readiness and progression. Skilled nursing care is crucial for successful bottle-feeding, a complex task in neonatal intensive care unit infants.

Area of Science:

  • Neonatal care
  • Pediatric nutrition
  • Infant development

Background:

  • Neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) discharge planning for preterm infants requires focus on key milestones.
  • Physiologic stability, weight gain, and successful oral feeding are critical for discharge readiness.
  • Successful bottle-feeding is a complex developmental task for preterm infants.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To provide a comprehensive literature review on feeding readiness and progression in preterm infants.
  • To explore the theoretical underpinnings of feeding readiness.
  • To identify factors influencing bottle-feeding readiness, progression, and success in this population.

Main Methods:

  • Comprehensive literature review of scientific articles.
  • Analysis of theoretical frameworks related to infant feeding.
  • Synthesis of factors affecting preterm infant feeding.

Main Results:

  • Feeding readiness assessment and skilled nursing care are essential for successful oral feeding.
  • Various factors influence the readiness, progression, and success of bottle-feeding in preterm infants.
  • The review synthesizes current knowledge on the state of science in this area.

Conclusions:

  • Optimizing preterm infant discharge necessitates a focus on feeding readiness and progression.
  • Skilled nursing interventions are vital for fostering successful oral feeding in the neonatal intensive care unit.
  • Understanding the factors affecting feeding is key to improving outcomes for preterm infants and their families.

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