Insights on Feeding and Swallowing Differences for Infants with Cleft Palate/Cleft Lip and Palate

Infants with cleft palate or cleft lip and palate (CP/CLP) have specific feeding needs based upon unique anatomy and swallow physiology. Poor or absent inner oral pressure and compensatory muscle movements affect all phases—oral, pharyngeal, and esophageal—of swallowing, and in some cases, increase risk of aspiration. These babies expend a significant amount of energy in the act of feeding. They demonstrate an average rate of 109.26 sucks per minute compared to infants without clefts who averaged 75.07 sucks per minute. Increased energy expenditure might lead to fatigue. Under these conditions, infants experience challenges in maintaining respiratory coordination and airway protection in the pharyngeal phase. When feeding an infant with cleft palate consider the following: Infants with CP/CLP tend to swallow more air when feeding. Therefore, it’s important to release this air by burping as the infant consumes each ounce. Frequent burping helps the infant avoid feeling falsely sated, and reduces spitting up, reflux, and gas pain. Infants with CP/CLP under-use their geniohyoid and mylohyoid muscles during the oral phase and have reduced tongue movement, resulting in an extended pharyngeal phase. SLPs might notice an audible swallow, mild pharyngeal wetness, and throat clearing as common feeding characteristics in infants with CP/CLP. These signs make sense when we consider these compensatory swallow patterns. Infants should feed in a relaxed state, but those with CP/CLP o...
Source: American Speech-Language-Hearing Association (ASHA) Press Releases - Category: Speech-Language Pathology Authors: Tags: Health Care Private Practice Slider Speech-Language Pathology Dysphagia Early Intervention Feeding Disorders Swallowing Disorders Source Type: blogs