The Development and Treatment of Oral-Motor Dysfunction:

Recent legislature actions have focused attention on the need to provide comprehensive educational and habilitative services to persons who are severely and profoundly handicapped. One important area of programming, directed to meeting the needs of this population, is the development and training of feeding skills. The social functions of eating in our culture and the importance of establishing and empirically validating intervention strategies designed to remediate oral-motor dysfunction are discussed. The evolution of therapies based on neuro-developmental and sensorimotor facilitation procedures and the efficacy of these therapies in remediating feeding disorders are reviewed. The implications of severe feeding dysfunction for the health of the severely and profoundly handicapped are highlighted, and the need for continued research in this area is emphasized.