DEVELOPMENT OF GASTRIC SLOW WAVES IN PRETERM INFANTS MEASURED BY ELECTROGASTROGRAPHY

The aim of this study was to investigate the developmental process of gastric myoelectrical activity (GMA) in preterm infants. Nineteen heal thy preterm infants were studied. GMA was recorded using surface elect rogastrography, and six follow-up studies were performed in each subje ct. Spectral analysis methods were applied to compute the parameters o f the electrogastrogram (EGG). The results showed that there was a dev elopmental process of GMA with age during the first 6 mo of life. 1) T he percentage of normal slow waves showed a progressive increase after birth (36.7 +/- 6.1, 37.8 +/- 6.2, 47.0 +/- 10.0, 52.2 +/- 12.2, 55.2 +/- 9.7, and 65.8 +/- 13.5% at 1 and 2 wk and 1, 2, 4, and 6 mo, resp ectively); 2) there was a significant postprandial increase in the per centage of normal slow waves during the first 2 mo after birth; and 3) the percentages of normal slow waves for different gestation ages wer e not statistically significant. In conclusion, the percentage of norm al slow waves is low at birth and there is a developmental process tha t may be stimulated by enteral feeding.