The Effect of the COVID-19 Pandemic and the Establishment of a Ronald McDonald House on Skin-to-Skin Times in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit: A Retrospective Study
<b>Objectives</b>: Kangaroo care is vital for the development of premature and low-birthweight infants. However, detailed data on skin-to-skin times, especially for extremely preterm infants in NICUs, is lacking. This study quantifies skin-to-skin times for these infants at the neonatolo...
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MDPI AG
2025-06-01
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| author | Stephanie Schaible Edda Hofstätter Wanda Lauth Martin Wald |
| author_facet | Stephanie Schaible Edda Hofstätter Wanda Lauth Martin Wald |
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| description | <b>Objectives</b>: Kangaroo care is vital for the development of premature and low-birthweight infants. However, detailed data on skin-to-skin times, especially for extremely preterm infants in NICUs, is lacking. This study quantifies skin-to-skin times for these infants at the neonatology department in Salzburg, considering factors like the COVID-19 pandemic, the opening of Ronald McDonald House, and sibling presence. <b>Methods</b>: We retrospectively analyzed data from the first eight weeks of life of 93 extremely preterm infants (<28 gestational weeks, <1500 g birth weight) treated at the Salzburg NICU from 2019 to 2023. Skin-to-skin times were recorded to the minute. <b>Results</b>: The mean value skin-to-skin time per visiting day was 241 min (±83), skin-to-skin was performed on 79.0% (±16.8) of the days of stay examined. During the pandemic, skin-to-skin care was performed on 64% of visit days, after the pandemic on 91% (<i>p</i> < 0.001). Before the Ronald McDonald House opened, the skin-to-skin time per visiting day was 215 min (±57.9), afterwards it was 273 min (±97) (<i>p</i> = 0.001). For Primipara the Kangaroo-Care time per day of visit was 257 min (±93), for Multipara 217 min (±52) (<i>p</i> = 0.043). <b>Conclusions</b>: Skin-to-skin is crucial for extremely premature infants and can be implemented for many hours a day. It is an integral part of parent-child interaction in a neonatal intensive care unit. External factors such as infrastructure, pandemic restrictions or siblings have a significant impact on skin-to-skin. |
| format | Article |
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| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-06-01 |
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| series | Children |
| spelling | doaj-art-38e6e6eb656c4b59b5de48fd89f58e642025-06-25T13:38:28ZengMDPI AGChildren2227-90672025-06-0112680310.3390/children12060803The Effect of the COVID-19 Pandemic and the Establishment of a Ronald McDonald House on Skin-to-Skin Times in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit: A Retrospective StudyStephanie Schaible0Edda Hofstätter1Wanda Lauth2Martin Wald3Division of Neonatology, Department of Pediatrics and Adolescent Medicine, Paracelsus Medical University, 5020 Salzburg, AustriaDivision of Neonatology, Department of Pediatrics and Adolescent Medicine, Paracelsus Medical University, 5020 Salzburg, AustriaTeam Biostatistics and Big Medical Data, IDA Lab Salzburg, Paracelsus Medical University, 5020 Salzburg, AustriaDivision of Neonatology, Department of Pediatrics and Adolescent Medicine, Paracelsus Medical University, 5020 Salzburg, Austria<b>Objectives</b>: Kangaroo care is vital for the development of premature and low-birthweight infants. However, detailed data on skin-to-skin times, especially for extremely preterm infants in NICUs, is lacking. This study quantifies skin-to-skin times for these infants at the neonatology department in Salzburg, considering factors like the COVID-19 pandemic, the opening of Ronald McDonald House, and sibling presence. <b>Methods</b>: We retrospectively analyzed data from the first eight weeks of life of 93 extremely preterm infants (<28 gestational weeks, <1500 g birth weight) treated at the Salzburg NICU from 2019 to 2023. Skin-to-skin times were recorded to the minute. <b>Results</b>: The mean value skin-to-skin time per visiting day was 241 min (±83), skin-to-skin was performed on 79.0% (±16.8) of the days of stay examined. During the pandemic, skin-to-skin care was performed on 64% of visit days, after the pandemic on 91% (<i>p</i> < 0.001). Before the Ronald McDonald House opened, the skin-to-skin time per visiting day was 215 min (±57.9), afterwards it was 273 min (±97) (<i>p</i> = 0.001). For Primipara the Kangaroo-Care time per day of visit was 257 min (±93), for Multipara 217 min (±52) (<i>p</i> = 0.043). <b>Conclusions</b>: Skin-to-skin is crucial for extremely premature infants and can be implemented for many hours a day. It is an integral part of parent-child interaction in a neonatal intensive care unit. External factors such as infrastructure, pandemic restrictions or siblings have a significant impact on skin-to-skin.https://www.mdpi.com/2227-9067/12/6/803kangaroo careextremely premature infantssiblingsCOVID-19Ronald McDonald House |
| spellingShingle | Stephanie Schaible Edda Hofstätter Wanda Lauth Martin Wald The Effect of the COVID-19 Pandemic and the Establishment of a Ronald McDonald House on Skin-to-Skin Times in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit: A Retrospective Study Children kangaroo care extremely premature infants siblings COVID-19 Ronald McDonald House |
| title | The Effect of the COVID-19 Pandemic and the Establishment of a Ronald McDonald House on Skin-to-Skin Times in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit: A Retrospective Study |
| title_full | The Effect of the COVID-19 Pandemic and the Establishment of a Ronald McDonald House on Skin-to-Skin Times in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit: A Retrospective Study |
| title_fullStr | The Effect of the COVID-19 Pandemic and the Establishment of a Ronald McDonald House on Skin-to-Skin Times in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit: A Retrospective Study |
| title_full_unstemmed | The Effect of the COVID-19 Pandemic and the Establishment of a Ronald McDonald House on Skin-to-Skin Times in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit: A Retrospective Study |
| title_short | The Effect of the COVID-19 Pandemic and the Establishment of a Ronald McDonald House on Skin-to-Skin Times in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit: A Retrospective Study |
| title_sort | effect of the covid 19 pandemic and the establishment of a ronald mcdonald house on skin to skin times in the neonatal intensive care unit a retrospective study |
| topic | kangaroo care extremely premature infants siblings COVID-19 Ronald McDonald House |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2227-9067/12/6/803 |
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