premature baby in incubator
Keeping newborns at the right temperature is one of the great challenges on neonatal wards, and Special Care Baby Units (SCBUs). Over recent years there have been many innovations in this regard. Now, following, the work of scientists at Nottingham Trent University, we can add another innovation to the list: the smart mattress.
Researchers at Nottingham Trent worked in collaboration with Rober Ltd, a mattress manufacturer based in Chesterfield, to develop a specialist “smart mattress” for premature babies that they say can help babies maintain their ideal temperature as they sleep, thereby reducing the possibility of adverse health events.
According to the team behind the mattress, it is able to identify small fluctuations in temperature quickly and provide instant relief so that premature babies are able to avoid the kind of sudden drop in core body temperature that typically results in respiratory and metabolic issues. This is a common problem with premature babies, who cannot thermoregulate as effectively as full-term babies.
The polyurethane and foam prototype is still at the testing stage and is being evaluated by preterm baby specialists, and the manufacturers say they expect it will eventually become available within a short space of time. However, as yet there is no expected release date for the mattress.
The smart mattress innovation is being led by Professor Peter Ford from NTU’s School of Art and Design. He said that the innovation provides “reliable thermal management”. Crucially, it does this without relying on an incubator.
He added that when preterm babies are not kept at the right temperature they face an increased risk of complications and that his team was keen to develop a product to help maximise their chances of normal development.
According to the charity Bliss, around 60,000 premature babies are born in the UK each year (around 1 in every 13 births).
Some of these babies will need neonatal unit support, although many babies born “late preterm” (34-36 weeks of pregnancy) will not need specialist neonatal unit care.
Premature babies are statistically more likely to develop long-term health issues, behavioural problems, educational special needs or cerebral palsy so any methods for improving their level of care on neonatal units should be welcome.