Application value of intermittent oral-to-esophageal tube feeding combined with perioral massage in treating dysphagia of children with Pierre-Robin Syndrome

Objective To investigate the clinical value of intermittent oral-to-esophageal tube feeding combined with perioral massage in treating dysphagia of children with Pierre Robin Syndrome (PRS).

Methods A total of 92 PRS children with mandibular distraction osteogenesis were selected and divided into observation group and control group by stratified randomization, with 46 cases in each group. The control group received continuous nasal tube feeding intervention, while the observation group received intermittent oral-to-esophageal tube feeding combined with perioral massage intervention. The changes in nutritional statusbody mass index (BMI), serum hemoglobin (Hb), total protein (TP), albumin (ALB) before and after 1 month of intervention were compared between the two groups. The clinical indicators (hospital stay, time to start oral feeding, and time to full gastrointestinal feeding) were also compared 1 month after the intervention. The swallowing conditions and incidence of complications were recorded in both groups.

Results After 1 month of intervention, BMI, Hb, TP and ALB in both groups significantly increased, and the observation group had significant higher values in BMI of (21.58±1.26) kg/m², Hb of (118.76±10.36) g/L, TP of (55.28±6.74) g/L, ALB of (33.46±4.37) g/L compared to BMI of (20.30±1.22) kg/m², Hb of (112.74±9.46) g/L, TP of (51.68±6.33) g/L and ALB of (30.59±4.68) g/L in the control group (P < 0.05). In the observation group, the feeding time was (32.26±4.43) minutes, hospital stay was (21.48±3.11) days, time to start oral feeding was (14.26±3.16) days, and time to full gastrointestinal feeding was (16.79±2.32) days, which were significantly shorter than (36.79±4.65) min, (24.39±3.31) days, (17.25±3.24) days, and (20.48±3.29) days respectively in the control group (P < 0.05); the average residual feeding volume was (10.26±2.18) mL and the number of cases with milk flow was 8 (17.39%) in the observation group, which were significantly less than (12.79±2.31) mL and 17 (36.95%) in the control group (P < 0.05).

Conclusion Intermittent oral-to-esophageal tube feeding combined with perioral massage can effectively improve swallowing difficulty in children with PRS and shorten the hospital stay.