Preemie feeding breakthrough: simple mouth exercises may cut hospital stays
NCT ID NCT07460089
First seen Jun 27, 2026 · Last updated Jun 27, 2026
Summary
This study compares three methods to help premature babies learn to eat by mouth: a special mouth exercise program (PIOMI), pacifier use, and standard care. Researchers will enroll 150 babies born between 26 and 32 weeks of pregnancy. The goal is to see which approach helps babies feed fully by mouth faster, gain weight better, and leave the hospital sooner.
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Study facts
What this study's own registry entry says, in plain language.
- Phase
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Not a phased trial
Phase numbers describe drug development. The registry uses this when they do not apply, as it does for trials of devices, procedures or behaviour changes, and for observational studies.
- Participants
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About 150 people
The number the study aims to enrol. It can still change while the study runs.
- Expected to start
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Mar 2026
An estimate. Start dates often move.
- Expected to finish
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May 2026
An estimate. End dates often move.
- Lead sponsor
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Other sponsor
The registry's catch-all category, for sponsors it does not file as a company, a government agency, or a research network.
Who can take part
This study's own entry requirements. Only the study team can say for certain whether you qualify.
- Ages
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1 day to 28 days
- Sex
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Anyone
- Healthy volunteers
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Not accepted
This study is not open to healthy volunteers. The entry requirements below say who it is open to.
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Copied word for word from the study's registry entry, so the wording is the study team's rather than ours.
Inclusion Criteria: 1. \- Preterm infants born at 26-32 weeks of gestational age 2. \- Clinically stable (no mechanical ventilation, no major congenital anomalies, no necrotizing enterocolitis) 3. \- Birth weight ≥1000 grams 4. \- Informed consent obtained from parents or legal guardians Exclusion Criteria: 1. Orofacial malformations (e.g., cleft lip, cleft palate) 2. Neurological impairment affecting sucking ability (e.g., intraventricular hemorrhage grade III or IV, periventricular leukomalacia) 3. Infants who received any prior structured oral motor intervention 4. Major congenital anomalies or genetic syndromes affecting feeding or development 5. Infants requiring surgical interventions during the study period 6. Lack of parental consent
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Conditions
The condition(s) this trial relates to.
As listed by the trial registrant
The condition terms exactly as the trial's registrant entered them.
How to take part
Only the study team decides who joins. These are the ways to reach them.
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The places running it
1 site. The list below names each one and where it is.
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The official record
ClinicalTrials.gov lists the study team's own contact details, including names and phone numbers. We don't republish those.
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A doctor treating you
A doctor who knows your case can contact a study site on your behalf, and can tell you whether this study is worth pursuing at all.
Contacts and locations
Locations
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Al-Habobi Teaching Hospital
Nasiriyah, Thi Qar, Iraq
More trials for these conditions
Other studies related to the condition(s) this trial covers.
- Can a bacterial extract shield preterm babies from lung infections?
- Parents take the syringe: a new way to feed premature babies
- Stool test may flag deadly gut disease in premature babies
- A Mother's words on a milk bag: a simple act that may deepen the bond with a premature baby
- Can early feeding shape a premature Baby's brain and body?
- Could a daily vitamin pill fortify breast milk for the tiniest babies?