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Updated: Aug 10, 2026
Probiotic Studies in Neonatal Mice Using Gavage
Published on: January 27, 2019
Vagal responsiveness to gavage feeding as an index of preterm status
1Department of Maternal and Child Health, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, Maryland 21205.
Insights
Cardiac vagal tone during gavage feeding in preterm infants is a key indicator of autonomic regulation. Increased vagal tone during feeding and subsequent decrease predict shorter hospitalizations, aiding clinical assessment.
Area of Science:
- Neonatal physiology
- Autonomic nervous system regulation
- Cardiorespiratory monitoring
Background:
- Vagal responsivity is crucial for gastrointestinal function and reflects autonomic control.
- Assessing autonomic regulation in preterm infants is vital for understanding their clinical status.
Purpose of the Study:
- To evaluate vagal responsivity during gavage feeding as an index of preterm infant clinical status.
- To investigate changes in cardiac vagal tone during and after gavage feeding.
- To determine the relationship between vagal tone response patterns and clinical outcomes.
Main Methods:
- Measured vagal and behavioral responsivity in 26 preterm infants during gavage feeding.
- Quantified cardiac vagal tone using a noninvasive vagal tone index derived from ECG.
- Analyzed changes in vagal tone during feeding and its association with hospitalization length and weight gain.
Main Results:
- Infants showing increased vagal tone during feeding and decreased tone post-feeding had significantly shorter hospitalizations.
- This association between vagal tone response and hospitalization length was independent of weight gain.
- Baseline vagal tone levels positively correlated with subsequent infant weight gain.
Conclusions:
- Quantitative extraction of subtle cardiac vagal tone changes from ECG during gavage feeding provides a novel index of preterm infant clinical status.
- Vagal tone response patterns during feeding offer predictive value for hospitalization duration, beyond traditional risk measures.
- This noninvasive measure can enhance the clinical assessment of preterm infants.
Abstract:
Vagal responsivity to orogastric stimulation is necessary for gastrointestinal function and may reflect autonomic regulation. Our study evaluated vagal responsivity during gavage feeding as an index of preterm clinical status. Vagal and behavioral responsivity of 26 preterm infants during gavage feeding was measured. Vagal tone was quantified with a noninvasive measure (vagal tone index) developed by Porges (Porges SW: U.S. patent 4,510.944, 1985), which extracts a valid measure of cardiac vagal tone from the ECG. The study investigated whether vagal tone changed during gavage feeding and whether individual differences in the vagal tone response pattern were related to clinical outcome. Infants who demonstrated an increase in vagal tone during feeding and a decrease after feeding had significantly shorter hospitalizations. This effect was independent of weight gain trajectories. Baseline levels of vagal tone were positively associated with subsequent weight gain. Traditional risk measures did not predict length of hospitalization independently of gestational age. This study represents the first documentation that small changes in cardiac vagal tone during gavage feeding, previously imperceptible to clinicians and researchers, may be quantitatively extracted from the ECG and provide an important index of clinical status.
