Aims of the study
The literature has highlighted that feeding difficulties and poor growth are major concerns relating
to the early management of babies with a cleft.
The aim of this study was to determine whether the use of one particular feeding bottle could
result in improved feeding behaviour and a lesser need for support from professionals, the starting
hypothesis being that bottles that could be squeezed would be associated with greater weight
velocity. The study used a combination of quantitative and qualitative assessments to measure
indicators of effective feeding, patterns of feeding and behaviour using diaries to record answers to
questions relating to method of feeding; number of daily feeds; time and average quantities taken;
behaviour between feeds (from ‘sleeps most of the time’, ‘awake and content’, ‘irritable’, ‘settles
only when held’, to ‘cries all the time’); and ease of bringing up wind. The study also aimed to
determine whether one particular feeding method afforded greater maternal self-esteem and a
maternal perception of the child which was closer to the mother’s ideal.