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Neonatal sucking behavior: comparison of perioral movement during breast-feeding and bottle feeding

Madoka Aizawa1, Katsumi Mizuno, Masanori Tamura

  • 1Division of Neonatology, Chiba Children's Hospital, Chiba, Japan.

Pediatrics International : Official Journal of the Japan Pediatric Society
|June 26, 2009
PubMed

Insights

Infant feeding methods significantly impact orofacial motion. Bottle feeding involves greater jaw and throat movement and a smaller mouth angle compared to breast-feeding.

Area of Science:

  • Pediatric feeding mechanics
  • Infant biomechanics
  • Orofacial development

Background:

  • Understanding infant feeding mechanics is crucial for assessing oral motor development.
  • Breast-feeding and bottle feeding present distinct biomechanical challenges for infants.
  • Variations in feeding methods may influence early orofacial motion patterns.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To compare orofacial motion and mouth angle during breast-feeding versus bottle feeding in normal infants.
  • To quantify differences in jaw and throat movements between feeding modalities.
  • To investigate the relationship between mouth angle and jaw movement during infant feeding.

Main Methods:

  • Thirteen normal infants were studied using digital video recording during breast and bottle feeding sessions.
  • Markers were applied to track facial landmarks (eye, jaw, throat).
  • Jaw and throat movements were quantified using the direct linear transformation method; mouth angle was also measured.

Main Results:

  • Throat region movement was significantly greater than jaw movement in both feeding types.
  • Jaw and throat movements were significantly smaller during breast-feeding compared to bottle feeding.
  • The mouth angle was larger during breast-feeding than bottle feeding, with a negative correlation to jaw movement.

Conclusions:

  • Significant differences exist in jaw and throat region movements between breast-feeding and bottle feeding in infants.
  • The observed differences in orofacial motion are partly attributed to variations in mouth angle during feeding.
  • These findings highlight distinct biomechanical patterns associated with different infant feeding methods.
Abstract

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