Premature infant care points Premature infant care points

Premature babies are different from regular newborns because they have not been fully nurtured in their mothers' wombs. Therefore, special attention should be paid to the care of premature babies. Today we will talk about the key points of premature baby care.

Precautions for premature babies

Prevent infection: Except for the person who is specifically taking care of the child, it is best not to let anyone else enter the premature baby's room, let alone hold the baby in the arms of relatives and friends. Wear a clean disinfected gown and wash your hands when feeding the baby. Mothers with colds should wear masks when breastfeeding and wash their hands with soap and hot water before breastfeeding. Pay attention to the baby's personal hygiene and change diapers or diapers frequently. Rinse with clean water after urination and defecation, keep the skin on the buttocks dry, and prevent diaper rash.

Keep warm: The indoor temperature should be kept between 24-28℃, and the indoor relative humidity should be between 55%-65%. If the temperature cannot be reached, you can consider using a hot water bottle to keep warm, but do not place the hot water bottle close to the baby to avoid scalding the baby. The baby's body temperature should be kept between 36-37℃, and measured once in the morning and afternoon. If the highest and lowest body temperatures differ by 1℃, measures should be taken to ensure that the body temperature is stable. Low-weight babies weighing less than 2.5 kg should be bathed with caution, and pay attention to keeping warm and the water temperature.

Baby massage: massage can form reflexes in the child's brain and promote intellectual development; it can also reduce the child's crying and ensure sleep. Abdominal massage can enhance the child's digestion and absorption function.

Careful feeding: Due to premature birth, premature infants have insufficient nutritional reserves. During hospitalization, they consume a lot of nutrients due to various diseases, which aggravates their nutritional debt. Their nutritional needs are much higher than those of ordinary full-term infants. Therefore, premature infants need special intensive nutritional support. Although breast milk has many advantages in nutrition, immunity and metabolism, the levels of some nutrients (such as protein, calcium, phosphorus, etc.) are significantly lower than the nutritional requirements of premature infants. Therefore, under the guidance of a doctor, according to regular nutritional monitoring and growth evaluation, premature infant formula milk powder or premature infant post-discharge formula mixed feeding milk powder should be selected as a nutritional supplement. Premature infants who cannot eat breast milk need premature infant formula milk powder and premature infant post-discharge formula milk powder. In addition, premature infants are immature, and the concentration of milk powder should be strictly followed according to the instructions. Too thick or too thin will affect the baby's growth.

Follow-up after discharge: The first 2-3 years after the premature baby is discharged from the hospital is a critical period for monitoring and preventing serious complications, especially the first year after birth. The first year after birth is the period of fastest growth for infants and young children, and it is also the most important period for catch-up growth for premature babies. Corrected age within 6 months is a critical period for discovering neurological damage (such as motor development delay, cerebral palsy, hearing impairment, etc.), and corrected gestational age around 36 weeks is a critical period for the occurrence and development of retinopathy (which can cause blindness in severe cases). Early detection, correct assessment, and timely intervention are the key to reducing the above-mentioned complications. Therefore, parents should take premature babies for regular growth and development monitoring, and further guide individualized scientific feeding, disease prevention and treatment, that is, follow-up.

Nutrition and feeding methods for premature infants

Any newborn whose gestational age is less than 37 weeks (less than 259 days), regardless of its birth weight, is called a premature baby (or immature baby).

Nutrition and feeding of premature infants: At present, all sectors pay more attention to it, and generally advocate early feeding to shorten the time of physiological weight loss or reduce the degree, reduce the incidence of hypoglycemia, and relatively reduce the blood bilirubin concentration. Generally, sugar water is fed 6 to 12 hours after birth, and breastfeeding is started 24 hours after birth. For those with low weight or poor general condition, such as those who have experienced cyanosis, dyspnea or surgical delivery, feeding can be appropriately delayed and intravenous fluid can be given.

Feeding method: It varies according to the maturity of premature babies. For those with heavier birth weight and good sucking reflex, they can be breastfed directly, otherwise they can be fed with a dropper or gastric tube.

The intake amount depends on the birth weight and maturity of the premature infant. The intake calculation formula for premature infants can be used as a reference.

Daily breastfeeding amount for premature infants within 10 days after birth (ml) = (number of days since birth + 10) × body weight (g/100)

After 10 days, daily breastfeeding amount (ml) = 1/5-1/4 body weight (g)

The above intake is the maximum intake. If the premature baby cannot finish eating, the remaining part can be supplemented intravenously to ensure the supply of protein, calories and water.

Feeding interval: It can be arranged according to the formula and weight. Generally, those weighing less than 1000 grams can be fed once an hour; those weighing 1001-1500 grams can be fed once every 1.5 hours; those weighing 1501-2000 grams can be fed once every 2 hours; those weighing 2001-2500 grams can be fed once every 3 hours, or treated separately according to specific circumstances.

Premature infant care needs attention

To supplement vitamins

Because premature babies grow fast and have insufficient reserves, vitamins A, B, C, E, K, calcium, magnesium, zinc, copper, iron, etc. should be supplemented under the guidance of a doctor one to two weeks after birth.

Preventing infection

Avoid or do not allow unauthorized persons to enter the premature baby room. Anyone (mothers and medical staff) must wash their hands before touching premature babies. When touching children, adults' hands should be warm, and do not kiss or touch them casually. Premature baby supplies should be disinfected and clean, and the table and bed should be kept clean. Mothers or companions with colds should wear masks. If they have diarrhea, they must wash their hands frequently, or replace them with others.

Nursing.

Breastfeeding

In order to "catch up" with their growth rate, premature babies need more protein and calories, and their mothers' bodies will cater to this need by producing high-calorie, high-protein breast milk. The richer antibodies and nutrients contained in this breast milk will protect the baby from many infections that premature babies are more susceptible to. If breast milk is insufficient, premature infant formula will be used.