Oral motor patterns during feeding in severely physically disabled children

Area of Science:

• Neurology
• Speech-Language Pathology
• Pediatric Rehabilitation

Background:

• Severe physical disabilities often impact oral motor functions, affecting feeding.
• Understanding these oral motor patterns is crucial for therapeutic interventions.
• Neonatal asphyxia can lead to conditions like spastic tetraplegia, affecting motor control.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate and categorize oral motor patterns during feeding in patients with severe physical disabilities.
• To identify correlations between specific oral motor patterns and etiological factors.
• To understand compensatory mechanisms for oral motor impairment.

Main Methods:

• Observational study of 58 patients with severe physical disabilities during feeding.
• Categorization of observed oral motor patterns, including jaw movements and tongue protrusion.
• Analysis of feeding patterns in relation to etiological factors like neonatal asphyxia and spastic tetraplegia.

Main Results:

• Five patients exhibited a sucking-like pattern.
• Twenty-nine patients showed up-and-down jaw movement with tongue protrusion; 20 of these closed lips before swallowing.
• Eight patients had up-and-down jaw movement without tongue protrusion; 16 showed lateral jaw movement, associated with coarser food textures.

Conclusions:

• Distinct oral motor patterns exist in patients with severe physical disabilities during feeding.
• These patterns, particularly jaw and tongue movements, can compensate for oral motor impairments.
• Spastic tetraplegia resulting from neonatal asphyxia is frequently associated with specific compensatory feeding patterns.