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The Effects of Pacifier-Activated Lullaby on Oral Feeding Among Preterm Infants (Music therapy)

9. September 2026 aktualisiert von: Sreekanth Viswanathan, Nemours Children's Clinic

Preterm infants often have difficulty learning how to feed by mouth because the coordination of sucking, swallowing, and breathing develops later in pregnancy. Delays in achieving full oral feeding can prolong hospitalization and increase the need for tube feeding.

This study evaluated whether a Pacifier-Activated Lullaby (PAL) system could improve oral feeding performance in preterm infants. The PAL device plays a recorded maternal or caregiver voice when an infant generates an adequate non-nutritive suck on a pacifier, providing positive reinforcement during feeding development.

In this randomized controlled trial conducted at Nemours Children's Hospital in Orlando, Florida, preterm infants who were transitioning from tube feeding to oral feeding were assigned either to receive PAL therapy in addition to standard feeding care or to receive standard feeding care alone. Researchers compared measures of oral feeding performance, feeding efficiency, growth, and progression toward independent oral feeding between the two groups.

The goal of the study was to determine whether reinforcing non-nutritive sucking with auditory feedback could enhance feeding development and improve clinical outcomes in preterm infants. The information gained from this study may help clinicians better understand the role of music-assisted feeding interventions in neonatal care and identify which infants are most likely to benefit from this approach.

Studienübersicht

Status

Rekrutierung

Bedingungen

Intervention / Behandlung

Detaillierte Beschreibung

Premature infants frequently experience feeding difficulties because the coordination of sucking, swallowing, and breathing develops during the later stages of gestation. Many infants born very preterm require prolonged tube feeding before they can safely and effectively feed by mouth. Delays in the transition from tube feeding to full oral feeding may contribute to prolonged hospitalization, increased healthcare utilization, and challenges in growth and development.

Non-nutritive sucking (NNS), such as sucking on a pacifier without receiving nutrition, is considered an important developmental precursor to oral feeding. Previous studies have suggested that NNS may improve feeding readiness, support maturation of oral motor skills, and facilitate the transition to oral feeding. Researchers have also explored whether positive reinforcement techniques can further enhance these feeding behaviors.

The Pacifier-Activated Lullaby (PAL) system is an FDA-cleared device designed to reinforce non-nutritive sucking through auditory feedback. The system consists of a pressure-sensitive pacifier connected to a music player. When an infant generates a suck that meets a predefined threshold, the device plays a recorded voice, typically the infant's mother singing lullabies. The intervention is based on principles of operant conditioning, with the auditory stimulus serving as a reward for effective sucking behavior.

This study was designed to evaluate whether PAL therapy improves oral feeding performance in preterm infants compared with standard neonatal feeding care alone. The trial was conducted in the Level IV Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) at Nemours Children's Hospital in Orlando, Florida.

Eligible participants were preterm infants born at less than 32 weeks gestational age who had reached approximately 34 to 36 weeks postmenstrual age and were transitioning from tube feeding to oral feeding. Infants were required to be receiving a substantial portion of their nutrition enterally while still developing oral feeding skills. Infants requiring significant respiratory support or considered unsafe for oral feeding were excluded.

Participants were randomly assigned to either the intervention group or the control group. Infants in the intervention group received PAL therapy in addition to standard feeding care. During PAL sessions, a recording of the mother's voice or a caregiver's voice was played whenever the infant generated an adequate non-nutritive suck on the PAL pacifier. Infants in the control group received standard feeding care, including routine opportunities for non-nutritive sucking and developmental care practices used in the NICU.

Researchers evaluated multiple measures of feeding performance, including oral feeding proficiency, feeding efficiency, milk transfer, feeding duration, growth, progression toward full oral feeding, and related clinical outcomes. Safety was monitored throughout the study, and PAL sessions were discontinued if infants exhibited signs of physiologic instability or feeding intolerance.

The purpose of this study was to determine whether reinforcing non-nutritive sucking with an auditory reward could accelerate the development of feeding skills and improve clinical outcomes in preterm infants. The findings may help clinicians better understand the role of music-assisted and behavioral reinforcement interventions in neonatal feeding therapy and identify patient populations most likely to benefit from these approaches.

Studientyp

Interventionell

Einschreibung (Geschätzt)

46

Phase

  • Unzutreffend

Kontakte und Standorte

Dieser Abschnitt enthält die Kontaktdaten derjenigen, die die Studie durchführen, und Informationen darüber, wo diese Studie durchgeführt wird.

Studienkontakt

Studieren Sie die Kontaktsicherung

Studienorte

    • Florida
      • Orlando, Florida, Vereinigte Staaten, 32827
        • Rekrutierung
        • Nemours Children's Hospital, Florida
        • Kontakt:
        • Kontakt:
        • Hauptermittler:
          • Caroline Chua, MD
        • Unterermittler:
          • Sreekanth Viswanathan, MD

Teilnahmekriterien

Forscher suchen nach Personen, die einer bestimmten Beschreibung entsprechen, die als Auswahlkriterien bezeichnet werden. Einige Beispiele für diese Kriterien sind der allgemeine Gesundheitszustand einer Person oder frühere Behandlungen.

Zulassungskriterien

Studienberechtigtes Alter

  • Kind

Akzeptiert gesunde Freiwillige

Ja

Beschreibung

Inclusion Criteria:

  • Preterm infants born at less than 32 weeks gestational age
  • Postmenstrual age between 34 0/7 and 35 6/7 weeks at enrollment
  • Receiving at least half of nutritional intake enterally and less than half orally
  • Written informed consent obtained from parent(s) or legal guardian(s)

Exclusion Criteria:

  • Mechanical ventilation at enrollment
  • Continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) support
  • High-flow nasal cannula support >2 L/min
  • Determined by the treating medical team to be unsafe for oral feeding
  • Determined by feeding or speech specialists to be unsafe for oral feeding
  • Clinical instability preventing participation in study procedures

Studienplan

Dieser Abschnitt enthält Einzelheiten zum Studienplan, einschließlich des Studiendesigns und der Messung der Studieninhalte.

Wie ist die Studie aufgebaut?

Designdetails

  • Hauptzweck: Behandlung
  • Zuteilung: Zufällig
  • Interventionsmodell: Parallele Zuordnung
  • Maskierung: Verdreifachen

Waffen und Interventionen

Teilnehmergruppe / Arm
Intervention / Behandlung
Experimental: Pacifier-Activated Lullaby (PAL) Plus Standard Feeding Care
Preterm infants randomized to this arm received Pacifier-Activated Lullaby (PAL) therapy in addition to standard neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) feeding practices. The PAL device used a pressure-sensitive pacifier that activated playback of a recorded maternal or caregiver voice when the infant generated a predetermined non-nutritive sucking threshold. PAL sessions were administered by trained study personnel while infants continued to receive routine developmental care, non-nutritive sucking opportunities, and oral feeding advancement according to NICU protocols.

The Pacifier-Activated Lullaby (PAL) intervention is a device-based feeding therapy designed to reinforce non-nutritive sucking in preterm infants through contingent auditory feedback. The PAL system consists of a pressure-sensitive pacifier connected to a digital music player. When the infant generates a suck that meets a predetermined pressure threshold, the device automatically plays a prerecorded maternal or caregiver voice, typically lullabies or children's songs, providing positive reinforcement for effective sucking behavior.

Infants assigned to the intervention arm received PAL therapy in addition to standard neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) feeding care. Maternal voice recordings were obtained before initiation of therapy and uploaded to the PAL device. During intervention sessions, the infant was offered the PAL pacifier approximately 30-45 minutes before scheduled feedings. Auditory stimulation was activated only when the infant achieved the predefined sucking threshold.

Andere Namen:
  • Auditory Reinforcement of Non-Nutritive Sucking Using a Pacifier-Activated Lullaby Device
Kein Eingriff: Standard Feeding Care Alone
Preterm infants randomized to this arm received standard NICU feeding care without use of the Pacifier-Activated Lullaby device. Standard care included routine developmental care, opportunities for non-nutritive sucking using a conventional pacifier, nursing care, parental involvement, and advancement of oral feeding according to established NICU feeding practices and clinical judgment. Participants underwent the same outcome assessments as the intervention group.

Was misst die Studie?

Primäre Ergebnismessungen

Ergebnis Maßnahme
Maßnahmenbeschreibung
Zeitfenster
Overall Transfer (OT):
Zeitfenster: Baseline (Day 0) through completion of the intervention period (Day 14)
Assessment of overall milk transfer before and after the intervention. Overall Transfer (OT): volume consumed divided by the prescribed volume of each feed expressed as a percentage
Baseline (Day 0) through completion of the intervention period (Day 14)
Proficiency (PRO)
Zeitfenster: Baseline (Day 0) through completion of the intervention period (Day 14)
Milk volume consumed during the first 5 minutes divided by the prescribed volume of each feed, expressed as a percentage
Baseline (Day 0) through completion of the intervention period (Day 14)
Endurance (rate of transfer)
Zeitfenster: Baseline (Day 0) through completion of the intervention period (Day 14)
Endurance (rate of milk transfer) expressed as ml/min
Baseline (Day 0) through completion of the intervention period (Day 14)

Sekundäre Ergebnismessungen

Ergebnis Maßnahme
Maßnahmenbeschreibung
Zeitfenster
Days to Full Oral Feeding
Zeitfenster: From randomization until achievement of full oral feeding or hospital discharge, whichever occurred first, for up to 15 weeks from randomization
Number of days required for participants to achieve full oral feeding without the need for supplemental gavage (tube) feeding.
From randomization until achievement of full oral feeding or hospital discharge, whichever occurred first, for up to 15 weeks from randomization
Number of Gavage Feeding Days
Zeitfenster: From randomization until achievement of full oral feeding or hospital discharge, whichever occurred first for up to 15 weeks from randomization
Number of days participants required gavage (tube) feeding support during the study period.
From randomization until achievement of full oral feeding or hospital discharge, whichever occurred first for up to 15 weeks from randomization
Daily Weight Gain
Zeitfenster: Baseline (Day 0) through completion of the intervention period (Day 14)
Change in body weight during the study period, including daily weight measurements, to assess the effect of PAL therapy on growth.
Baseline (Day 0) through completion of the intervention period (Day 14)

Mitarbeiter und Ermittler

Hier finden Sie Personen und Organisationen, die an dieser Studie beteiligt sind.

Sponsor

Ermittler

  • Hauptermittler: Caroline Chua, MD, Nemours Children's Hospital

Publikationen und hilfreiche Links

Die Bereitstellung dieser Publikationen erfolgt freiwillig durch die für die Eingabe von Informationen über die Studie verantwortliche Person. Diese können sich auf alles beziehen, was mit dem Studium zu tun hat.

Allgemeine Veröffentlichungen

Studienaufzeichnungsdaten

Diese Daten verfolgen den Fortschritt der Übermittlung von Studienaufzeichnungen und zusammenfassenden Ergebnissen an ClinicalTrials.gov. Studienaufzeichnungen und gemeldete Ergebnisse werden von der National Library of Medicine (NLM) überprüft, um sicherzustellen, dass sie bestimmten Qualitätskontrollstandards entsprechen, bevor sie auf der öffentlichen Website veröffentlicht werden.

Haupttermine studieren

Studienbeginn (Tatsächlich)

16. November 2020

Primärer Abschluss (Geschätzt)

31. Dezember 2026

Studienabschluss (Geschätzt)

31. März 2027

Studienanmeldedaten

Zuerst eingereicht

31. August 2026

Zuerst eingereicht, das die QC-Kriterien erfüllt hat

9. September 2026

Zuerst gepostet (Tatsächlich)

15. September 2026

Studienaufzeichnungsaktualisierungen

Letztes Update gepostet (Tatsächlich)

15. September 2026

Letztes eingereichtes Update, das die QC-Kriterien erfüllt

9. September 2026

Zuletzt verifiziert

1. September 2026

Mehr Informationen

Begriffe im Zusammenhang mit dieser Studie

Andere Studien-ID-Nummern

  • 1568970-9

Plan für individuelle Teilnehmerdaten (IPD)

Planen Sie, individuelle Teilnehmerdaten (IPD) zu teilen?

JA

Beschreibung des IPD-Plans

De-identified individual participant data underlying the results reported in publications arising from this study may be shared with qualified researchers upon reasonable request. Requests will be reviewed by the study investigators and institution and may require a data use agreement to protect participant confidentiality. No directly identifiable participant information will be shared.

IPD-Sharing-Zeitrahmen

Available upon publication of the primary manuscript and for up to 5 years thereafter

IPD-Sharing-Zugriffskriterien

De-identified individual participant data (IPD) underlying the results reported in publications arising from this study may be made available to qualified researchers upon reasonable request. Requests must include a scientifically sound research proposal and will be reviewed by the study investigators and Nemours Children's Health. Access may require approval by the appropriate institutional review board (IRB) and execution of a data use agreement. Only de-identified data and supporting study documentation necessary to conduct the approved analyses will be provided. Data will be shared through a secure electronic transfer method that complies with institutional privacy and security requirements.

Art der unterstützenden IPD-Freigabeinformationen

  • STUDIENPROTOKOLL
  • ICF

Arzneimittel- und Geräteinformationen, Studienunterlagen

Studiert ein von der US-amerikanischen FDA reguliertes Arzneimittelprodukt

Nein

Studiert ein von der US-amerikanischen FDA reguliertes Geräteprodukt

Ja

Produkt, das in den USA hergestellt und aus den USA exportiert wird

Nein

Diese Informationen wurden ohne Änderungen direkt von der Website clinicaltrials.gov abgerufen. Wenn Sie Ihre Studiendaten ändern, entfernen oder aktualisieren möchten, wenden Sie sich bitte an register@clinicaltrials.gov. Sobald eine Änderung auf clinicaltrials.gov implementiert wird, wird diese automatisch auch auf unserer Website aktualisiert .