Effect of Oral Placement Therapy on Feeding Skills in Children with Down Syndrome

Abstract

Feeding difficulties are extremely common in children with Down Syndrome (DS), often leads to nutritional deficiencies as well as affecting the child’s overall development. Underlying sensory motor issues of oral peripheral mechanism cause poor lip seal, chewing issues and swallowing difficulties, which direct towards the need of oral sensory and motor based intervention for this population. Reviewing of case history was employed for 3 female children in the age range of 3-5 years diagnosed with DS which involved demographic information, clinical examinations, medical history, and Oral Placement Therapy (OPT) based feeding therapy to improve oral sensorimotor skills and feeding difficulties and the remarkable positive effects on oral awareness and sensitivity, tongue jaw dissociation, grading and fixing on the feeding skills. The study concluded the effect of OPT on feeding therapy and an effective means of dealing with feeding issues in children with Down syndrome. The research study also highlighted the need for further research to evaluate the long-term sustainability of the effect by using the intervention strategies based on individual needs.