Gastric Residual Volume Assessment among Preterm Neonates at Neonatal Intensive Care Units

Background: The ability of preterm to tolerate and efficiently digest enteral nutrition is crucial for their growth and development.So, monitoring residual volume (GRV) is important factor to assess feeding tolerance Aim of the study: assessing the gastric residual volume before enteral feeding among preterm neonates at neonatal intensive care units. Design: A descriptive design was utilized for conducting this study. Settings: This study was carried out at the neonatal intensive care unit in Mostafa Hassan Hospital affiliated to Fayoum University and Fayoum General Hospital affiliated to Ministry of Health. Sample: A Purposive sample of 60 preterm neonates who met the inclusion criteria atNeonatal Intensive Care Units in the previous mention settings. Tools: Two tools were used to collect study data, a simple questionnaire sheet and gastric residual volume record sheet Results: the mean birth weight and gestational age of the studied neonates was 1370±520 and 32.0±2.33, moreover, The majority of the studied neonates were diagnosed with low birth weight. The mean amount of formula given was 19.52±12.43 while while the mean gastric residual volume was 2.23±0.98. More than half of the neonates had normal gastric residual levels, while the remaining exhibited mild to severe increases in residual volume. Conclusion: while more than half of preterm neonates in this study maintained normal gastric residual volumes, the presence of mild to severe increases in about one half of them warrants careful monitoring and individualized feeding plans. Recommendation: Adjust feeding strategies based on GRV levels, ensuring neonates with mild to moderate increases receive modified feeding schedules. Further researches are needed to incorporate positions as one of reducing gastric residuals modality in daily practice after feeding of preterm neonates.