Pediatric Feeding & Swallowing Disorders

Scope of Care

The Pediatric Feeding & Swallowing Disorders Clinic at The Child Development & Rehabilitation Center serves patients form birth to 21 years of age with established or suspected feeding and swallowing challenges. Typically, children served are experiencing feeding aversions, oral motor delay, difficulty swallowing, behavioral problems related to feeding, food refusal, poor weight gain, difficulty with texture transition, or G-tube to oral feeding transition.

Examples of medical diagnoses that may be associated with feeding problems include:

• Prematurity
• Cerebral palsy
• Congenital syndromes (i.e. Down Syndrome)
• Cleft lip and palate
• Congenital cardiac conditions
• Chronic lung disease/bronchopulmonary dysplasia
• Gastroesophageal reflux
• Failure to thrive
• Autism/pervasive developmental disorders

Examples of presenting problems that may be associated with feeding problems include:

• Coughing, choking, or gagging during a meal
• Poor weight gain
• Vomiting
• Total or partial food refusal
• Mouth weakness
• Difficulty chewing or swallowing
• Resistance to food textures
• Behavior concerns at mealtime

Services We Provide

The Pediatric Feeding & Swallowing Disorders Clinic provides consultation, evaluation, and ongoing management for children, youth, and their families who have established or suspected feeding and swallowing challenges. The goal of the clinic is to establish feeding patterns that optimize nutrition and growth while supporting the child's development in physical, social, emotional, and cognitive areas.

Examples of the methods used to evaluate and meet patient's care needs include:

• identify underlying medical conditions that impact feeding and growth
• identify oral motor dysfunction and its implications
• obtain and interpret growth data
• determine the adequacy of calories and other nutrients in the diet
• evaluate learned behavior patterns, family functioning, and psychosocial barriers that my limit optimal nutrition and growth
• identify the need for specialized formula, nutritional supplements, concentrated calories, or alternate means of feeding
• identify treatment strategies for children with oral motor or sensory based feeding delays
• prioritize feeding goals for children with special health needs as related to development, physical health, nutrition, and psychosocial well being

Service Providers

The care team may be made up of any number of the following providers based on each child's individual needs: developmental pediatrician, pediatric gastroenterologist, pediatric nurse practitioner, registered dietician, speech language pathologist, occupational therapist, registered nurse, psychologist, and social worker.

How to make a Referral

The Pediatric Feeding & Swallowing Disorders Clinic accepts referrals from primary care providers, parents, public health nurses, schools, Early Intervention/ECSE programs, therapists, and other health care providers.

To request a consultation or for more information please call: (503) 494-8095 or (800) 452-3563.

Download the feeding clinic intake form.

Research

Quantitation of Oral-Motor Function in Infants: Brochure, Poster

Training

Training - Students, residents, and fellows in medicine, nursing, speech language pathology, and nutrition participate in the Pediatric Feeding and Swallowing Disorders Clinic as part of their training. Please contact each individual discipline for further information.