Improved Outcomes with an Outpatient Multidisciplinary Intensive Feeding Therapy Program Compared with Weekly Feeding Therapy to Reduce Enteral Tube Feeding Dependence in Medically Complex Young Children.

PURPOSE OF REVIEW: The prevalence of feeding disorders in medically complex children is estimated to be as high as 80%. Enteral tube nutrition (ETN) is commonly used for nutritional support in children with feeding disorders. Adverse consequences of ETN include medical complications, psychosocial problems, and higher healthcare costs. We used a retrospective cohort controlled study design to compare outcomes of our outpatient multidisciplinary intensive feeding therapy (IFT) program to our traditional therapy (TT) of single-discipline, once weekly feeding therapy to reduce ETN dependence in medically complex young children. RECENT
FINDINGS: Children in the IFT cohort experienced a median reduction in ETN dependence of 49% (34.5-58.5%) compared with a median reduction of 0% (0-25%) for TT (p > 0.0001). Almost half of the IFT cohort no longer required ETN by the conclusion of the 5-week program. Medically complex young children (median age 26 months) successfully reduce or eliminate ETN in an outpatient multidisciplinary intensive feeding program.