Several developmental factors must be considered by clinicians responsible for evaluating and treating children who have disorders of feeding and swallowing following brain injury. These factors include anatomic and physiologic aspects of the swallowing apparatus and their development in infancy and early childhood; nutritional issues related to the child's growth and metabolism; cognitive issues and behavioral responses that are frequently more difficult to manage in young children than in older children or adults; and social dimensions of feeding, including the nurturing relationship between parent and child that both complicates and supports rehabilitation. Effective clinical management of children requires careful attention to these and other developmental components of rehabilitation. This article reviews selected issues in pediatric rehabilitation that have implications for medical management, feeding/swallowing intervention, and long-term cognitive-behavioral recovery of brain-injured children with swallowing disorders.
No takes yet. Share an insight, caveat, or question.
Ylvisaker et al. (1989) studied this question.