Mental health articles

Physical disorders
Feeding difficulties are frequently associated with neurological, respiratory,
cardiac and gastrointestinal conditions, and with anatomical anomalies of the
gastrointestinal tract. Neurological conditions affecting arousal, muscle tone
and primitive reflex expression can adversely affect the motor control necessary
for appropriate oro-motor function, and for swallowing that does not place the
infant at risk of aspiration. Respiratory and cardiac conditions can limit an
infant’s endurance for adequate oral feeding, and fatigue can compromise an
infant’s ability to coordinate sucking, swallowing and breathing effectively.
Conditions such as gastro-oesophageal reflux (GOR) and oesophagitis can make feeding both uncomfortable and, if aspiration occurs, risky. Structural defects
that interfere with feeding include choanal atresia, which reduces or precludes
nasal breathing, cleft lip and/or palate, which makes sucking inefficient, and OA.
After surgical correction of OA, GOR, strictures and dysmotility of the
oesophagus may persist, creating obstacles to the introduction of oral feeds.
Micrognathia, macroglossia and tracheomalacia, affecting the competency of the
airway, also have a negative effect on the adequate coordination of sucking,
breathing and swallowing. Other conditions, such as developmental delay, are
also associated with poor feeding skills.

Tags: disorders