KANGAROO CARE WITH BUBBLE CPAP

Families and the Public

• February 2, 2023

Kangaroo care is the skin-to-skin placement of a newborn against a human chest. Both the mother and the father can hold their infants in a Kangaroo position while the newborn is on bubble CPAP. Kangaroo care is almost a 50-year-old practice. It was initially intended for full-term infants in the first few hours of their life to promote bonding of the delivering mothers with their newly born infant(s) and to facilitate initiation of breastfeeding. Later, it was introduced in the care of stable preterm infants who are admitted to the Neonatal ICU for several weeks or months. Many studies have shown that Kangaroo care has many benefits for preterm and full-term infants. Kangaroo care is associated with reduced mortality, hospital-acquired infection and length of hospital stay. It has been shown to correlate with cardiorespiratory and temperature stability, improvement in neuro-developmental outcomes, and successful breastfeeding. We recommend Kangaroo care to infants who are clinically stable and who are at least 750g. Infants on bubble CPAP can be cared for in a kangaroo positions. These infants can stay in Kangaroo care as long as they are stable with no episodes of decrease in their oxygen desaturations (<90%) or heart rate (<80 bpm). Although, at such a young age they may not be ready for feeding by mouth. The bedside nurse will help you position your infant on your chest and will monitor the infant during kangaroo care. In general, if the preterm infant requires bubble CPAP with supplemental oxygen, they have to remain on bubble CPAP when having Kangaroo care. If no supplemental oxygen is required and their weight is at least 1200g, they may be trialed off CPAP while in kangaroo care. Cardiorespiratory monitoring should continue during kangaroo care.

KANGAROO CARE WITH BUBBLE CPAP

KANGAROO CARE WITH BUBBLE CPAP

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