EARLY FEEDING PROBLEMS - IDENTIFICATION BY PARENTS AND HEALTH-CARE PERSONNEL

This study investigated the discrepancy between parental reports indic ating a high prevalence of feeding problems during infancy and the rel atively low identification rate of such cases at child health care cen ters. Thirty nurses were interviewed about definitions, prevalence, ca uses, and interventions for such problems. Thereafter, they were retro spectively asked about presence of feeding problems in 30 infants, for whom parents had reported existence of feeding problems, and in 30 co ntrol infants. A group (n=22) based on parent-nurse agreement about th e existence of a problem was compared with a group (n=8) identified as problematic by parents only and with the control group. The parent-nu rse agreement group stood out as more burdened: infant growth was affe cted, there had been feeding history problems (breastfeeding, weaning and protracted meals) and the level of parental concern was higher. Mo re infant respiratory infections were reported, and more medication ha d been prescribed for this group. Although nurses seemed to rely to a great extent on parental reports in identifying feeding problems, the present results suggested that the parent-nurse discrepancy in identif ication rate may occur due to nurses' weighting of parental complaints with other factors such as the child's general condition and the fami ly social situation.