The document describes the development of a wireless oral-feeding monitoring system for preterm infants. Oral-feeding disorders are common in preterm infants and can negatively impact growth, neurodevelopment, and increase the risk of neurodevelopmental delays. Currently, evaluating the coordination of sucking, swallowing, and breathing during feeding is subjective and limited. The new monitoring system uses a pressure sensor, microphone, and electromyogram to quantitatively monitor sucking pressure, swallowing sounds, and diaphragmatic breathing. It also includes an algorithm to detect sucking, swallowing, and breathing events. Testing with term and preterm infants proved the accuracy and practicality of the system.

1. DEVELOPMENT OF A WIRELESS ORAL-FEEDING
MONITORING SYSTEM FOR PRETERM INFANTS
ABSTRACT
Oral-feeding disorder is common in preterm infants. It not only shows the adverse effect
for growth and neurodevelopment in clinical but also becomes one of the important indicators of
high-risk group for neurodevelopment delay in preterm infants. Preterm infants must coordinate
the motor patterns of sucking, swallowing, and respiration skillfully to avoid choking, aspiration,
oxygen desaturation, bradycardia, or apnea episodes. However, up to now, the judgment and
classification severity in preterm infants are mostly subjective and phasic evaluations. Directly
monitoring the coordination of sucking–swallowing–breathing during oral feeding
simultaneously is difficult for preterm infants. In this study, we proposed a wireless oral-feeding
monitoring system for preterm infants to quantitatively monitor the sucking pressure via a
designed sucking pressure sensing device, swallowing activity via a microphone to detect
swallowing sound, and diaphragmatic breathing movement via surface
electromyogram.Moreover, a sucking–swallowing–breathing detection algorithm is also
proposed to evaluate the events of sucking–swallowing–breathing activities. Furthermore,
verification of the accuracy and rationality of oral-feeding parameters with clinical findings
including sucking, swallowing, and breathing in term and preterm infants had proved the
practicality and value of the proposed system.