The value of a multi-discipline: medical, dietetic and psychotherapy approach in treating children with adverse feeding behaviours

摘要

Our multi-disciplinary clinic treats children younger than 2 years of age who present with feeding and growth concerns (Lucarelli et al., 2003). We complete initial assessments -medical (clinical problems; developmental milestones), dietetic (growth and dietary evaluation) and psychotherapy (emotional impact of the birth; subsequent experiences of the mother and infant and impact on feeding).Our case example is a 9 month old infant presenting with feeding difficulties to the extent that he has to be swaddled and asleep supine in his cot to accept being fed any milk or solid food, termed as 'dream feeding'. Apart from the main problem stated, the medical and dietetic assessment revealed nothing other than the texture and quality of the diet was not age appropriate. The psychotherapy assessment looked at the relationship between mother and infant and took into account the mother's own childhood experiences of being interned in a prisoner of war camp.