The relationship between bathing, skin flora and the physiologic and behavioral responses of premature infants

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to document the consequences of bathing premature infants in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU). Although bathing is a standard nursing procedure in most NICUs, there is minimal scientific evidence justifying its' use. Investigating the traditional practice of bathing is significant to neonatal nursing and has the potential for further research and change in the care of premature infants. Changing the traditional practice of bathing could also be time and cost effective and may have a positive impact on the developmental outcome of premature infants.Forty premature infants between the ages of 14 to 21 days were the subjects of this study. Infants were randomly assigned to either a control or an experimental group. Infants in the control group were bathed every other day as is the practice in the NICU at UCLA while infants in the experimental group were not bathed for four days. Infants in both groups were observed for 45 minutes for their behavioral and physiologic responses during the bath-time if they are in the control group or at an equivalent time if they are in the experimental group. Skin cultures were obtained on all infants on the first day when they are recruited to the study and four days later.Preliminary results indicate that infants who were bathed had significant drops in their oxygen saturation levels and frequent state changes. There were no differences between groups on skin culture results.