Haberman feeder

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Haberman feeder

The Haberman Feeder (also Haberman teat , SpecialNeeds Feeder ) is a special drinking aid named after its inventor Mandy Haberman for infants with weak suction (especially with cleft palates ). It enables the baby to drink without building up a suction vacuum. In the case of cleft malformations, the Haberman teat can facilitate oral nutrition and thus make invasive measures such as the insertion of a gastric tube superfluous.

To the formation

The daughter of the British designer Mandy Haberman was born with a congenital disorder of the development of the jaw, the so-called Pierre Robin Sequence , which is usually associated with a cleft palate and corresponding drinking difficulties. To help her daughter in the 1980s, Haberman used X-ray films of breastfeeding babies to study the mechanics of breastfeeding and the physiological movement patterns of breastfeeding. She discovered that drinking from the breast mainly works through "milking" movements of the tongue and lower jaw, with the baby's suction only bringing the nipple into a favorable shape, while drinking from the bottle is based primarily on pure sucking. Then, in collaboration with doctors and midwives, she developed the first drinking aid especially for babies with malformations of the palate.

functionality

The Haberman Feeder is not emptied by sucking, but by "milking movements" of the tongue and jaw, ie by a movement pattern that comes close to that of breastfeeding. A one-way valve separates the milk reservoir (“teat”) from the bottle. Before feeding, the air is forced out by pressure on the reservoir. By holding the bottle upside down, breast milk or baby food will automatically run into the reservoir. Because of the valve, the milk cannot flow back into the bottle. While the baby is drinking, milk continues to run out of the bottle so that the reservoir remains full and can be consumed by the baby. The slit-shaped opening at the top of the valve closes automatically between movements of the jaw to prevent flooding of the oral cavity. The strength of the milk flow can be regulated in three stages by turning the reservoir (using markings).

Therapeutic benefit

The primary goal is to enable babies with cleft palates to enjoy oral nutrition even before the surgical cleft is closed. In addition, the feeder helps normalize the unphysiological tension-compression ratio of the orofacial muscles due to the gap. This also creates better conditions for the child's language development.

literature

  • N. Heinzel and J. Baltzer: Aspects of birth and breastfeeding of children with cleft formations In: Zentralblatt für Gynäkologie 2003; 125: 393-397
  • Christa Herzog-Isler, Klaus Honigmann: Let us have some time. How children with lip and palate malformations can be breastfed. Information brochure of Medela AG

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