Category: NICU
Strengthening mother-baby bonds in the NICU
By UHS News Team
March 2, 2017
Categories: Children's Health / News / NICU / Pregnancy / Research
The bond between mother and newborn is not only powerful, it’s important for the healthy development of the child, research has shown. But when a baby is born too soon or has other medical problems requiring a stay in the neonatal intensive care unit, fear and uncertainty can interfere with the forming of those bonds. “We see moms looking terrified,” Umber Darilek, a registered nurse at University Hospital, told Texas Public Radio reporter Wendy Rigby. “A lot of women don’t know how to approach their babies, especially when there are tubes and lines coming out of all directions.” To try …Read More >
Tags: bonding, newborn, NICU, pregnancy
A video chat with baby
By UHS News Team
June 3, 2015
Categories: Children's Health / News / NICU / Pregnancy / Technology
It’s one of the most joyous times in life — the birth of a baby. But sometimes medical reasons can keep mom and baby apart for hours, days or even weeks. That the time when physical and emotional bonds are formed. And while separation can’t always be avoided, University Health System’s Neonatal Intensive Care Unit is using some popular technology to make it easier on both mother and child. Baby Chat uses iPads and Apple’s FaceTime application to allow the newborns to hear the sound of their mother’s voice, and for moms to see and hear the movement, breathing and …Read More >
Tags: babies, FaceTime, iPad, pregnancy
Saving precious sight
By UHS News Team
July 7, 2014
Categories: Children's Health / News / NICU / Pregnancy / Research / Technology
It’s among the happiest moments for new parents, when their baby makes eye contact and smiles in recognition. But for very premature babies, a common and potentially blinding eye disease can rob families of that moment. More than half of all infants born 10 or more weeks prematurely have some level of retinopathy of prematurity, or ROP — a disease in which blood vessels in the back of the eye grow abnormally. That can lead to scarring and detachment of the retina. About 5 to 8 percent require treatment, which involves destroying the abnormal blood vessels with lasers or a …Read More >
Tags: babies, NICU, pregnancy, premature, research, telemedicine, vision
A vital ingredient for baby’s health
By UHS News Team
May 29, 2014
Categories: Children's Health / News / NICU / Pregnancy
Are you getting enough iodine in your diet? A new policy statement by a national physicians’ group says there’s a good chance you aren’t — and that’s worrisome if you’re pregnant or breastfeeding. It could be risky for your child. Iodine is an essential element for a baby’s brain to develop normally. And if mom gets too little, it can weaken both her and her child’s defenses against certain environmental pollutants — including some found in some foods and public water supplies. The American Academy of Pediatrics said this week that many pregnant and breastfeeding women should be taking iodine supplements …Read More >
Tags: brain, lactation, nutrition, pregnancy, salt, supplements
Helping babies who can’t eat
By UHS News Team
Categories: Children's Health / News / NICU
As a newborn, Eluterio Mireles’ tiny body lacked the normal length of intestine needed to properly absorb nutrients through normal feeding. It’s an uncommon problem, but not a rare one. And babies who suffer from it usually are fed intravenously — a therapy known as parenteral nutrition, or PN. While PN has been a lifesaver for babies such as Eluterio, doctors have long known that over many months — often until the intestine matures or an intestinal transplant is performed — PN treatment can damage the liver. Sometimes a liver transplant is required; other times the babies do not survive. …Read More >
Tags: children's health, fish oil, gastrointestinal, liver, NICU, nutrition, research
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