Non-nutritive sucking for increasing physiological stability and nutrition in preterm infants.
As a general rule, preterm infants are unable to feed orally. Therefore, they are usually fed via a nasogastric tube. They are also given a pacifier developed specifically for preterm infants. Infants need coordinated sucking, swallowing and breathing to feed adequately. This ability starts to develop by 28 weeks gestation with full coordination being achieved between weeks 32 and 34. Infants born before 32 weeks gestation are usually not able to feed effectively from the breast or a bottle. Last but not least, non- nutritive sucking has a calming effect on preterm infants.
The authors of the meta-analysis identified twelve eligible studies enrolling a total of 746 preterm infants in searches updated to February 2016. The findings of this meta- analysis must be considered limited. The authors recommend additional, large and randomized studies.