Abstract
The purpose of the study was to investigate the differences of the electromyographic (EMG) activities of the peri-oral muscles during suckling between breast feeding and feeding with two types of conventional artificial nipples. Forty-eight babies, who were born normally and healthy, participated in the study. The babies were divided into three groups based on the feeding methods; such as the breast feeding group (BRF: 28 babies, mean age: 13.9 wks), the round outform artificial nipple group (ROF: 11 babies, mean age 14.6 wks) and the elliptic outform with semilunar valves inside the nipple group (SV: 12 babies, mean age 13.9 wks). EMGs were induced from the temporalis (TM), masseter (MM), orbicular oris (OM) muscles and the suprahyoid muscles group (SM), while the EMG activities and the suckling cycle time were critically compared.
The following results were obtained:
1. There were no differences in the activity of the MM and the OM between the groups, but the BRF showed significantly higher activity in the TM and the SM than in the ROF group (p<0.05, p <0.01), and the SV group showed higher activity in the SM than in the ROF group (p<0.01) as well.
2. Total muscle activity of the four muscles also showed higher in the BRF and SV groups than in the ROF group (p<0.01, p<0.05).
3. The duration of the suckling cycle time was significantly longer in the SV than in the BRF and ROF (p<0.01).
4. During suckling movements babies showed biphasic suckling patterns; compression and suction phases, and the tongue showed peristaltic movements during both ROF and SV feeding. The EMG activity of the SM in SV group showed remarkably higher activity relating to compressing the nipple by the tongue and lowering the tongue for suction.
These findings suggest that the babies were able to intake milk from the round outform conventional artificial nipple with rather less efforts of the peri-oral muscles when compared to the breast and/or elliptic outform nipple with semilunar valves.
