Other content tagged: news research
Queen Elizabeth II honours Inga Warren
Inga Warren from NIDCAP Federation International has been appointed Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE) in the Queen's New Year's Honours for her services to preterm born babies. This is one of the highest accolades given and is a wonderful recognition, justly deserved, of her work and dedication to babies and their families. Inga Warren is a neonatal development specialist with extensive experience as an occupational therapist working with children of…
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The impact of visitation restrictions in the NICU during COVID-19
Covid-19 has a big impact on the care given in Neonatal Intensive Care Units (NICUs). The implementation of family centred care has increased in recent years due to many health benefits for the neonates and family, but the Coronavirus pandemic caused hospitals to change their visitation policies. In a study conducted by Murray and Swanson, changes of the visitation rights in the NICUs and the consequences for parents and their newborns are discussed. In order…
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Preterm children’s long-term academic performance after adaptive computerised training
Altered brain development and academic underachievement are potential consequences of preterm birth. A recent study from Germany now showed that adaptive computerised training can increase short-term academic growth in preterm children. Low attention, working memory and mathematic scores can be the result of preterm birth, making preterm children more vulnerable to reduced academic performance. While research has shown that an adaptive working memory training (Cogmed) has no long-term benefits on school performance for preterm school-aged…
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Parents’ satisfaction with follow-up healthcare for their preterm born children and their suggestions for improvement
Follow-up healthcare for very preterm infants is crucial for their development, but the quality of care differs a lot across Europe. As parents of very preterm born children have experienced first-hand the follow-up care for their children, they can provide impactful ideas for improvements and future policies. In a Europe-wide study, the authors collected data from medical records and questionnaires that parents had filled out during the first five years of their preterm born child’s life. This study gathered data…
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Prevention of Coronavirus transmission from mothers to newborns while breastfeeding and engaging in skin-to-skin contact
So far, there is insufficient knowledge about COVID-19 spreading to newborns from their mothers who tested positive for the virus at the time of the birth. A new study suggests that hygiene precautions can protect neonates from contracting the virus during breastfeeding and skin-to-skin contact with the mother. Salvatore and colleagues conducted a study with women who tested positive for COVID-19 at the time of the birth of their child. In total, 82 infants born at three New York hospitals…
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Delivering transformative action in paediatric pain: a Lancet Child & Adolescent Health Commission
Pain is a feeling every child and adolescent, will experience in their lives. Yet, unrecognised, undertreated, or poorly managed pain in childhood can have long-lasting negative consequences such as chronic pain, disability and distress. Even though there are several tools, expertise, and evidence available to handle childhood pain more successfully, pain is too often silenced and relief too infrequently given. Therefore, it is time for a change. The Lancet…
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Ways of neonatal management during the pandemic
The pandemic of COVID-19 confronts our conventional and approved way of neonatal and maternal health management with many uncertainties. What is the risk for transmitting the virus form mother to child during delivery? Is breastfeeding still the recommended way of feeding the infant? And what are the risk factors associated with transmission? The article “Neonatal management and outcomes during the COVID-19 pandemic: an observational cohort study”, published by the Lancet Child & Adolescent Health, investigates possible answers to those questions…
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Promising new research findings in the field of RSV prevention
Respiratory Syncytial Virus (RSV) has long been recognised as a serious threat to infant health. RSV is the most common cause of bronchiolitis (inflammation of the small airways in the lung) and pneumonia (infection of the lungs). No prevention exists for all infants. Research published earlier this year now suggests that a new preventative option may be able to lower severe RSV infection and hospitalisations. Particularly common during the winter months, RSV infects the lungs…
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Factors Influencing Implementation of Family-Centred Care in a Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU)
Being in the NICU is a very stressful experience for infants. The stress level even increases when babies are separated from their parents. This can be avoided with Family-Centred Care (FCC), which involves parents in the care for their infants in order to reduce the stress on newborns and parents. Even though research shows that interactions with parents lead to multiple beneficial effects for both parents and infants, including lowering the stress level for…
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Non‐evidence‐based beliefs increase inequalities in the provision of infant‐ and family‐centred neonatal care
Many hospitals in the world still do not recognise the importance and benefits of family-centred care. This hinders parents to engage in potentially life-saving care procedures, like kangaroo mother care or breastfeeding. In a scientific study, Mendizabal-Espinosa and Warren identified obstacles regarding the implementation of family-centred care in neonatal intensive care units (NICU) of two publicly funded hospitals in Mexico. Data was gathered during a 10-month time period, by observing 29 parents (21 mothers…
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