Abstract
Of 173 infants between 500-2400 grams with RDS and born in the same hospital, 33 were provided care in computer-monitored & controlled enclosed incubators. Only the availability of an unocupied computerized incubator at the time of each of their admissions determined their selection. For purposes of analysis each of the 33 infants in the computer-assisted care study group was matched with the one infant in the remaining group of 140 routinely cared for infants that best matched the study infant for birth weight, sex, color, gestation, Apgar scores, maternal age, gravidity, parity, birth date, economic status, and major admission diagnoses. The matching of infants was confirmed statistically and was done by a neonatologist uninvolved with the study and having no foreknowledge of any infant's survival outcome. Four (12%) of the 33 study infants and 14 (42%) of the control infants died within the first 7 days of life. This difference was significant at p<.01. Although there was no significant difference in the number of infants in the two groups requiring mechanical respiratory support, the mortality rates of 17 study infants who received respirator care was significantly lower (11.8%) than the rate tabulated for 17 matched respirator-cared-for control infants (65%), (p<.005). Computer-assisted care, therefore, enhances infant survival by some mechanism that alters the outcome but not the need to support some infants with a respirator.
Article PDF
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Perlstein, P., Edwards, N., Atherton, H. et al. 1011 Computer-Assisted Newborn Care. Pediatr Res 12 (Suppl 4), 532 (1978). https://doi.org/10.1203/00006450-197804001-01017
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1203/00006450-197804001-01017