The Cardiology Feeding Clinic at the St. Louis Children’s Hospital and WashU Medicine Heart Center provides you with the support and guidance needed to help your baby grow stronger through tube feeding and safely transition to oral feeding.
It’s not uncommon for babies born with congenital heart disease to have difficulty taking the food they need to help them sustain their growth and development. That’s why your baby may require a feeding tube (nasogastric (NG) tube) to ensure they are getting the necessary nutrients to help get healthier and stronger for future procedures.
If your baby is ready to leave the hospital, but requires a feeding tube, our Cardiology Feeding Clinic offers support for your family. The clinic is led by a multidisciplinary team consisting of a pediatric dietitian and speech pathologist, who understand that each patient is unique and adapts tube weaning to meet each patient’s needs. We offer a range of services including assessment, therapy, nutrition management, and continuous progress monitoring. We provide multiple check-ins with families each week to monitor weight, assess progress, and adjust feeding plans as needed. Our overarching goal is to safely transition your child away from tube feeding.
The customized services we provide to your child are part of the continuum of care the Heart Center offers to patients and their families.
The infant feeding clinic will set up follow-up outpatient sessions for your family, in conjunction with other appointments, as your child progresses through their heart care. During these appointments, our team provides information and resources to help with your child’s food progression and ensure they are getting the necessary nutrients to grow during the early stages, whether from breast milk, fortified breast milk, or formula.
When it’s time to wean your baby from the feeding tube, the feeding clinic team will be there to help. We work closely with your baby’s cardiologist and nurse practitioner to ensure their needs are being met and that your baby is continuing to grow and get stronger.
The tube weaning process is unique to each infant. The feeding clinic team specializes our approach to what works best for your baby and works toward a goal of taking liquid or food by mouth by your child’s first birthday.
How can our dietitian provide support for your baby?
- Ensure your baby is getting the calories needed with a feeding tube to support their growth
- Help develop a food log with parents to track what your baby is eating
- Teach families how to fortify breast milk when needed or make formula for weight gain
- Ensure your baby is well-nourished before future procedures, such as the Glenn surgery, typically done during the 4- to 6-month range
- Focus on tube weaning by developing a plan with the speech pathologist
How can our speech pathologist help you navigate feeding?
- Evaluate your baby’s oral motor skills related to feeding
- Focus on tube weaning by developing a plan with the dietitian
- Help with progression to solids, such as purees or baby food
- Assist with bottle feeding and cup drinking when appropriate
- Observe for swallowing safety and perform a swallow study if needed due to clinical concerns for aspiration
What if my baby doesn’t need a feeding tube?
If your baby leaves the hospital and isn’t tube fed, the feeding clinic team is available to support the needs of your child if they begin having feeding difficulties. Your care team will provide contact information before hospital discharge. We will follow your child’s progress via your child’s cardiology or cardiac neurodevelopment clinic appointments to ensure they are eating well enough to gain weight and progress appropriately.
For more information about tube feeding, visit National Pediatric Cardiology Quality Improvement Collaborative.
