The impact of early therapeutic intervention on the central pattern generator in premature newborns - A preliminary study and literature review.

THE AIM To study the effect of therapeutic intervention on the improvement of the rhythmicity of non-nutritive and nutritive sucking in premature newborns and on the suck central pattern generator. MATERIAL AND METHODS Stimulation of the breast zone was performed in two premature newborns by means of the Vojta method. Intraoral pressure was measured during non-nutritive and nutritive sucking before and after this therapeutic intervention. The maximum negative pressures generated during individual sucks and the intervals between sucks were analysed. RESULTS The stimulation of the breast zone using the Vojta method seems to have no impact on the duration of individual sucking episodes. However, a significant improvement in the rhythmicity and regularity of sucking was observed in both newborns: the coefficient of quartile deviation for the intervals decreased from 15% and 11% to 13% and 6%, respectively, and for the maximum negative pressures it decreased from 24% and 27% to 9% and 19%, respectively. Additionally, the median value of the maximum negative pressure decreased in both newborns: from -39 and -37 mmHg to -45 and -60 mmHg, respectively. CONCLUSIONS The stimulation of the breast zone using the Vojta method seems to have a direct impact on the central pattern generator, which improves the rhythmicity as well as the regularity of both non-nutritive and nutritive sucking.