Physiological responses and behavioural organization of very low birth weight infants during swaddled versus traditional weighing.
Silvia Vicente-Perez, Gemma Robleda, Ignasi Gich and 4 others
PMID 37458256WHAT IT FOUND
Swaddling very low birth weight infants during weighing lowered stress scores and kept heart rate and breathing steadier than routine weighing.
The differences were seen during and after weighing.
Key findings
01During weighing, the zero to ten stress score averaged 0.23 with swaddling and 4.97 without swaddling.
02The paper reports mean heart rate and respiratory rate were 16% and 43% higher during unswaddled weighing than swaddled weighing, although within clinical normal limits.
03After weighing, respiratory rate and stress scores were lower on swaddled days than on routine control days.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for RNs
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What it does not show
Only 19 infants were studied at one neonatal unit, and all had to be clinically stable, older than one week, and fed human milk. The behavioural stress score was rated by observers who could not be blinded, and agreement between raters was not as strong as the paper says is desirable. The sample size did not allow the authors to detect differences in adjusted outcomes. The paper did not assess nurses' attitudes, workload, or the feasibility of adding swaddling to routine care. The study measured responses around weighing only, so it does not show longer-term developmental or safety effects.
Declared interests
The supplied metadata lists non-U.S. government research support. The article text does not report a specific funder or author conflicts of interest.
The easy way to misread this
Do not conclude that swaddled weighing improves long-term neurodevelopment or is safe for all infants. The study measured only heart rate, breathing and a behavioural stress score around weighing in stable very low birth weight infants, and it did not assess longer-term outcomes or nurse workload.