Clinical condition 2: Respiratory Rate
Baby has the following: 10 days old; 31 weeks GA; 32 3/7 weeks PMA; in an incubator on room air; on caffeine; gains 20 grams per day (Susan, 2013).
Essential signs: 2-3 apneas a day; HR=136; pulse oximetry=99 …show more content…
In the process, the nerves send a pleasing message to the brain which, in turn, triggers the release of oxytocin. The hormone then travels along the neurones to other parts of the brain. During its movement, the first target oxytocin reaches is the brain stem where it immediately calms and brings stabilization to the cadiorespiratory variables following the brain stem’s shift from sympathetic to parasympathetic control that occurs during Kangaroo mother care (Anderson, …show more content…
Quiet sleep is, however, not a characteristic of sleep in an incubator. Kirsten, Bergman, and Hann (2001), say that quiet sleep more often accompanies a parasympathetic-induced low RR and this can decrease even more. He adds that in the course of KMC, a baby’s RR may go up slightly or sometimes decrease by 3-6 minutes per minute. According to Dood (2005), the decrease in RR is a common occurrence in normal sleeping patterns and is usually because the infant sleeps while being in a head-up tilted position or in a prone position. This mostly coincides well in the second or third hour of kangaroo mother care, a time when there is an alteration of the respiratory drive due to the stimulation of the sensitive adenosinergic prolongation (Dood, 2005).
In many cases, respiratory rate during the Kangaroo mother care is usually the same as that in the incubator, and even in ventilated infants. It has also been established that there occurs a significantly high stability soon after the onset of Kangaroo mother care. Although there are some apparent variations, RR responses do not exceed the clinically acceptable ranges and as such, have not triggered any physiologic compromise; consequently, kangaroo mother care is safe in regard to its impact on respirations (Susan,