Neonatal network : NN 

About: Neonatal network : NN is an academic journal. The journal publishes majorly in the area(s): Intensive care & Neonatal nursing. Over the lifetime, 1433 publications have been published receiving 16754 citations.

The development of a tool to assess neonatal pain.

Abstract: The objectives of this study were to (1) develop a behavioral assessment tool for the measurement of pain in the preterm and full-term neonate; (2) establish the construct and concurrent validity, interrater reliability, and internal consistency of the tool; and (3) examine the relationship between the pain scores and infant characteristics. Thirty-eight infants contributed to the 90 procedures videotaped for the study. The Neonatal Infant Pain Scale (NIPS) was used to score behavioral responses before, during, and after each intrusive procedure. The significant difference in NIPS scores over time indicates that the scale provides a measurement of intensity of infant responses to intrusive procedures. Concurrent validity was established by correlations, ranging from .53 to .84, between NIPS scores at each minute of observation and scores on the Visual Analogue Scale. Interrater reliability was high: Pearson correlations ranged from .92 to .97 across successive minutes of observation. The six component scores of the NIPS had high internal consistency: Cronbach's alphas were .95, .87, and .88 for before, during, and after the procedures, respectively. Although gestational age and five-minute Apgars were positively associated with NIPS scores over time, there was no association between these factors and responsiveness to pain, as measured by change in NIPS scores from before to during the procedure. Results are discussed in terms of the use of the NIPS in clinical trials and its clinical application in a neonatal intensive care unit.

Mothers' stories about their experiences in the neonatal intensive care unit.

Abstract: The purpose of this article is to let mothers tell the stories of their neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) experiences and to determine how well these experiences fit the Preterm Parental Distress Model. Interviews were conducted with 31 mothers when their infants were six months of age corrected for prematurity and were analyzed using the conceptual model as a framework. The analysis verified the presence in the data of the six major sources of stress indicated in the Preterm Parental Distress Model: (1) pre-existing and concurrent personal and family factors, (2) prenatal and perinatal experiences, (3) infant illness, treatments, and appearance in the NICU, (4) concerns about the infant's outcomes, (5) loss of the parental role, and (6) health care providers. The study indicates that health care providers, and especially nurses, can have a major role in reducing parental distress by maintaining ongoing communication with parents and providing competent care for their infants.

The early feeding skills assessment for preterm infants.

Abstract: Preterm infants develop the skills necessary to begin oral feeding as their health stabilizes and as they reach a postconceptional age that supports coordination of breathing and swallowing with oral-motor functioning. The time from initiation of oral feeding to full oral feedings (with adequate intake for growth and maintenance of physiologic stability) can vary from days to months for the preterm infant. The approach to feeding the infant during this transition period must be developmentally supportive and tailored to meet the needs of the individual. To accomplish this, caregivers--notably nurses and parents--need to communicate about the specific skills that the infant has gained, about skills that are emerging, and about skills that the infant has not yet developed. The Early Feeding Skills (EFS) Assessment is a checklist for assessing infant readiness for and tolerance of feeding and for profiling the infant's developmental stage regarding specific feeding skills: the abilities to remain engaged in feeding, organize oral-motor functioning, coordinate swallowing with breathing, and maintain physiologic stability. This article introduces the EFS.

Music therapy research in the NICU: an updated meta-analysis.

Abstract: PURPOSE To provide an overview of developmental and medical benefits of music therapy for preterm infants. DESIGN Meta-analysis. SAMPLE Empirical music studies with preterm infants in the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU). MAIN OUTCOME Evidence-based NICU music therapy (NICU -MT ) was highly beneficial with an overall large significant effect size (Cohen's d = 0.82). Effects because of music were consistently in a positive direction. RESULTS Results of the current analysis replicated findings of a prior meta-analysis and included extended use of music.(1) Benefits were greatest for live music therapy (MT ) and for use early in the infant's NICU stay (birth weight <1,000 g, birth postmenstrual age <28 weeks). Results justify strong consideration for the inclusion of the following evidence-based NICU -MT protocols in best practice standards for NICU treatment of preterm infants: music listening for pacification, music reinforcement of sucking, and music pacification as the basis for multilayered, multimodal stimulation.

Patent ductus arteriosus in the preterm infant.

Abstract: The ductus arteriosus is a communication between the main pulmonary trunk and the descending aorta. In utero, the ductus arteriosus allows blood flow to be diverted from the high-resistance pulmonary circulation to the descending aorta and the low-resistance placental bed. Functional closure of the ductus arteriosus occurs soon after birth but can be delayed in premature infants and in certain situations. Patency of the ductus arteriosus results in alterations in blood flow to many different organ systems. This article describes the physiologic effects, as well as symptoms, diagnosis, and management of a patent ductus arteriosus in the preterm infant.