The effect of different feeding methods on infant's weight, full oral feeding transition time and success of breastfeedi̇ng in preterm infants

Objective: The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of finger feeding and syringe feeding methods on infant weight, time to full oral feeding and breastfeeding success in preterm infants. Material and Methods: The study was conducted as a parallel groups randomized experimental study. The study was conducted in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit of Aydın Obstetrics and Gynecology Hospital between February 2022 and December 2022. The sample included preterm infants with 320/7-366/7 gestation weeks who were receiving care and treatment in the neonatal intensive care unit. In the sample, n=38 infants were randomly assigned to study group 1 and n=36 infants to study group 2 and the study was completed with n=74 infants. Data were collected with the Preterm Infant Information Form, Preterm Infant Follow-up Form and LATCH Breastfeeding Diagnostic Measurement Tool. Babies selected for the study groups were finger or syringe fed according to the study group at three feeding meals each day. After the transition to full oral feeding, the transition time to full oral feeding and breastfeeding success with LATCH were measured. The data were analyzed using Mann Whitney U test and t test. Results: There was no significant difference between the weights at the transition to full oral feeding, the duration of transition to full oral feeding and the mean LATCH scores of the infants in the finger-fed and syringe-fed groups. The mean weight of the finger-fed babies at the transition to full oral feeding was 2231.39±465.14 grams, while the mean weight of the syringe-fed babies at the transition to full oral feeding was 2155.61±359.39 grams (p=0.437). The mean duration of transition to full oral feeding was 3.84±1.55 days in finger-fed infants and 4.28±1.78 days in syringe-fed infants (p=0.334). The mean LATCH score of the finger-fed infants was 8.10±1.77 and the mean LATCH score of the syringe-fed infants was 8.16±1.76 (p=0.888). Conclusion: In preterm infants, there was no difference between finger and syringe feeding methods in terms of the effect of the baby's weight at the transition to full oral feeding, the duration of transition to full oral feeding and breastfeeding success.