OBJECTIVE: This article aims to describe the profiles of the newborns (NBs) examined in the neonatal unit of HC/UFMG by the speech pathologist service and to verify the main factors, which affect the transition to exclusive oral feeding (OF). METHODS: A cross-sectional study that analyzedmedical records of 406 NBs examined from April2005 to December2008 thatattended at least 3 speech pathologist appointments. For data analysis, descriptive analyses were performed, including survival analysis and Cox regression. RESULTS: The majority of the NBswere male (50.7%), had low birth weight (44.8%), and had suitable intrauterine growth (73.5%), with an average 32.6-weekgestational age (GA) and an average 1790-gramweight. Most of the NBswere using probes for feeding, and SOG (63.9%) was the most used. It was observed that 284 (61.7%) of the NBs reached full OF at the time of discharge from the speech pathologist's treatmentand required an average 12.5 days to achieve exclusive OF. Regarding the survival analysis, a statistically significant relationship existed between the transition time to OF and birth weight, as well as intrauterine growth, sucking rhythm, intraoral pressure, and sucking reflex. In the Cox regression, an association with the transition time to full OF was found with the following: very low birth weight (p<0.01), intraoral pressure (p=0.00), and inadequate sucking rhythm (p<0.01). CONCLUSIONS: It was found that the aspects, which influence the transition to exclusive OF for NBs are weight, intraoral pressure, and suction rhythm, independent of the other conditions of NBs.
