Evidence to support treatment options for children with swallowing and feeding disorders: A systematic review

Memorie M Gosa1,2, Hillary T Carden3, Courtney C Jacks3

  • 1The University of Alabama, Tuscaloosa, AL, USA.

Insights

This review found limited high-quality evidence for pediatric feeding and swallowing therapies. Behavioral strategies show promise, but more research is needed for oral motor, sensory, and pharmaceutical interventions.

Area of Science:

  • Pediatric Medicine
  • Clinical Nutrition
  • Speech-Language Pathology

Background:

  • Increasing prevalence of pediatric feeding and swallowing disorders necessitates effective multidisciplinary treatments.
  • Clinicians utilize various strategies to address these complex pediatric conditions.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To systematically review evidence on common strategies for treating pediatric swallowing and feeding problems.
  • To evaluate the efficacy of different therapeutic approaches based on published literature.

Main Methods:

  • Conducted a systematic search of 10 electronic databases for peer-reviewed literature up to December 2015.
  • Included 61 studies of varying methodological quality that reported original data.

Main Results:

  • The majority of studies (60/61) focused on behavioral therapies for pediatric feeding and swallowing disorders, reporting mixed findings.
  • Limited high-quality (Phase 4) research exists for joint nutrition and behavior interventions, systematic desensitization, and operant conditioning.

Conclusions:

  • Insufficient evidence exists to determine the effects of oral motor, sensory, and pharmaceutical therapies on pediatric feeding outcomes.
  • Behavioral strategies demonstrate some efficacy in small studies, but high-quality evidence for specific approaches is limited.
Abstract

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