DISORDERS OF ORAL CAVITY

Various structures of oral cavity participate in sucking, biting, chewing, lubrication and swallowing of ingested food, which is also primed for digestion by various salivary enzymes, e.g. amylase or lingual lipase. While sucking mechanisms are well developed at birth in term newborns, swallowing matures slowly over 1-2 months leading to higher risk of aspiration in newborns. Chewing mechanisms usually matures by 6-8 months, by the time to start weaning.

14.5.1