Skin-to-Skin Care Is a Safe and Effective Comfort Measure for Infants Before and After Neonatal Cardiac Surgery

Objectives: To determine the effect of skin-to-skin care on stress, pain, behavioral organization, and physiologic stability of infants with critical congenital heart disease before and after neonatal cardiac surgery. Design: A baseline response-paired design was used, with infants acting as their own controls before, during, and after skin-to-skin care at two distinct time points: once in the preoperative period (T1) and once in the postoperative period (T2). Setting: Cardiac ICU and step-down unit in a large metropolitan freestanding children’s hospital. Subjects: Convenience sample of 30 infants admitted preoperatively for critical congenital heart disease. Interventions: Eligible infants were placed into skin-to-skin care for 1 hour with their biological mothers once each at T1 and T2. Measurements and Main Results: Measurements of stress (salivary cortisol), pain and behavior state (COMFORT scale), and physiologic stability (vital signs) were assessed immediately before skin-to-skin care, 30 minutes into skin-to-skin care, and 30 minutes after skin-to-skin care ended. At both T1 and T2, infant pain scores were significantly decreased (p
Source: Pediatric Critical Care Medicine - Category: Pediatrics Tags: Online Cardiac Intensive Care Source Type: research