LAUSR

Background: Feeding difficulties are common in infancy. There are currently no valid and reliable parent-report measures to assess bottle-feeding in infants younger than 7 months. The Neonatal Eating Assessment Tool (NeoEAT)—Bottle-feeding has been developed and content validated. Purpose: To determine the factor structure and psychometric properties of the NeoEAT—Bottle-feeding. Methods: Parents of bottle-feeding infants younger than 7 months were invited to participate. Exploratory factor analysis was used to determine factor structure. Internal consistency reliability was tested using Cronbach &agr;. Test-retest reliability was tested between scores on the NeoEAT—Bottle-feeding completed 2 weeks apart. Construct validity was tested using correlations between the NeoEAT—Bottle-feeding, the Infant Gastroesophageal Reflux Questionnaire—Revised (I-GERQ-R), and the Infant Gastrointestinal Symptoms Questionnaire (IGSQ). Known-groups validation was tested by comparing scores between healthy infants and infants with feeding problems. Results: A total of 441 parents participated. Exploratory factor analysis revealed a 64-item scale with 5 factors. Internal consistency reliability (&agr;= .92) and test-retest reliability (r = 0.90; P < .001) were both excellent. The NeoEAT—Bottle-feeding had construct validity with the I-GERQ-R (r = 0.74; P < .001) and IGSQ (r = 0.64; P < .001). Healthy infants scored lower on the NeoEAT—Bottle-feeding than infants with feeding problems (P < .001), supporting known-groups validity. Implications for Practice: The NeoEAT—Bottle-feeding is an available assessment tool for clinical practice. Implications for Research: The NeoEAT—Bottle-feeding is a valid and reliable measure that can now be used in feeding research. Video Abstract Available at https://journals.lww.com/advancesinneonatalcare/Pages/videogallery.aspx.