The characteristics of nutritive sucking may serve as an indicator of the infant's general health and vitality, as well as a clue to the presence of various sources of behavioral toxicity and CNS dysfunction such as caused by perinatal drug effects. The long- term goal of the proposed research is to develop and market a system that will facilitate the detection of abnormalities in nutritive sucking behavior (and recovery) within the nursery setting. It will also permit follow up testing in the well baby clinic and the home environment. Such a system will be useful in the screening for, and the diagnosis and treatment of, a variety of neonatal and infant disabilities, and in the detection of heretofore unrecognized perinatal sources of CNS dysfunction.
The specific aims of Phase I are first, to establish the technical feasibility for developing a safe, inexpensive and disposable diagnostic nipple device (along with its non-disposable computing component) and second, to begin evaluating the potential for such a diagnostic system to become a standard clinical method for screening the newborn for behavioral toxicity and CNS dysfunction, and for following the recovery of the infant during the post-natal period. Ultimately, this system is envisioned as providing a routine clinical test to alert the neonatologist to the presence of behavioral abnormalities and to guide the clinician in performing more specific diagnostic procedures.
