Skin-to-skin contact at birth for vaginally delivered neonates in a tertiary care hospital: A cross-sectional study

Safety and Feasibility of Skin-to-Skin Contact in the Delivery Room for High-Risk Cardiac Neonates

Early skin-to-skin contact (SSC), beginning in the delivery room, provides myriad health benefits for mother and baby. Early SSC in the delivery room is the standard of care for healthy neonates following both vaginal and cesarean delivery. However, there is little published evidence on the safety of this practice in infants with congenital anomalies requiring immediate postnatal evaluation, including critical congenital heart disease (CCHD). Currently, the standard practice following delivery of infants with CCHD in many delivery centers has been immediate separation of mother and baby for neonatal stabilization and transfer to a different hospital unit or a different hospital altogether. However, most neonates with prenatally diagnosed congenital heart disease, even those with ductal-dependent lesions, are clinically stable in the immediate newborn period. Therefore, we sought to increase the percentage of newborns with prenatally diagnosed CCHD who are born in our regional level II-III delivery hospitals who receive mother-baby SSC in the delivery room. Using quality improvement methodology, through a series of Plan-Do-Study-Act cycles we successfully increased mother-baby skin-to-skin contact in the delivery room for eligible cardiac patients born across our city-wide delivery hospitals from a baseline 15% to greater than 50%.

Elements that influenced immediate mother-neonate contact during the golden hour

OBJECTIVE

To characterize the elements that influenced the immediate mother-neonate contact during the golden hour.

METHOD

A cross-sectional observational study with a quantitative approach. A total of 105 parturient women hospitalized in two maternity hospitals with usual risk were observed. The instrument was based on Brazilian National Normal Childbirth Care Guidelines and World Health Organization good obstetric practices, totaling 36 questions. The analysis took place in a descriptive way using the Chi-Square Test for proportion comparison.

RESULTS

Of the parturient women, 2.8% (n = 3) experienced the golden hour, and 82.9% (n = 87), immediate contact between 1 and 5 minutes. In 85.7% (n = 90) of the group, there were no causes that contraindicated immediate contact. For 48.0% (n = 49) of participants, contact was re-established by the nursing staff within 31-60 minutes.

CONCLUSION

Immediate contact during the golden hour had low hospital care compliance. Neonatal procedures that can be postponed predominated as influencing elements of the golden hour. The assistance observed in the birth rooms investigated reflects the need to reduce interventions in labor and birth.

Elementos Que Influenciaram No Contato Imediato Entre Mãe E Bebê Na hora dourada

RESUMO Objetivo: Caracterizar os elementos que influenciaram no contato imediato entre mãe e bebê na hora dourada. Método: Estudo observacional transversal, com abordagem quantitativa. Foram observadas 105 parturientes internadas em duas maternidades de risco habitual. O instrumento teve como base as Diretrizes Nacionais de Assistência ao Parto Normal e as boas práticas obstétricas da Organização Mundial da Saúde, totalizando 36 questões. A análise ocorreu de forma descritiva mediante o Teste do Qui-Quadrado para comparação de proporção. Resultados: Das parturientes, 2,8% (n = 3) vivenciaram a hora dourada, e 82,9% (n = 87), o contato imediato entre 1 e 5 minutos. Em 85,7% (n = 90) do grupo, não houve causas que contraindicassem o contato imediato. Para 48,0% (n = 49) das participantes, o contato foi restabelecido pela enfermagem entre 31–60 minutos. Conclusão O contato imediato na hora dourada teve baixa adesão na assistência hospitalar. Os procedimentos neonatais passíveis de serem adiados predominaram como elementos influenciadores da hora dourada. A assistência observada nas salas de parto investigadas reflete a necessidade de reduzir as intervenções no parto e nascimento.

Comfort-holding in critically ill children: a scoping review

Purpose

To understand and summarize the breadth of knowledge on comfort-holding in pediatric intensive care units (PICUs).

Sources

This scoping review was conducted using PRISMA methodology. A literature search was conducted in MEDLINE, EMBASE, PsycINFO, CINAHL, and the Cochrane CENTRAL Register of Controlled Trials. Search strategies were developed with a medical librarian and revised through a peer review of electronic search strategies. All databases were searched from inception to 14 April 2020. Only full-text articles available in English were included. All identified articles were reviewed independently and in duplicate using predetermined criteria. All study designs were eligible if they reported on comfort-holding in a PICU. Data were extracted independently and in duplicate.

Principal findings

Of 13,326 studies identified, 13 were included. Comfort-holding was studied in the context of end-of-life care, developmental care, mobilization, and as a unique intervention. Comfort-holding is common during end-of-life care with 77.8% of children held, but rare during acute management (51% of children < three years, < 5% of children ≥ three years). Commonly reported outcomes included child outcomes (e.g., physiologic measurements), safety outcomes (e.g., accidental line removal), parent outcomes (e.g., psychological symptoms), and frequency of holding.

Conclusion

There is a paucity of literature on comfort-holding in PICUs. This scoping review identifies significant gaps in the literature, including assessment of child-based outcomes of comfort-holding or safety assessment of comfort-holding, and highlights core outcomes to consider in future evaluations of this intervention including child-based outcomes, parent-based outcomes, and safety of the intervention.

Supplementary Information

The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s12630-021-02090-3.