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Neonatal intensive care unit incubators reduce language and noise levels more than the womb

Journal of Perinatology volume 40, pages 600–606 (2020)Cite this article

Subjects

Abstract

Objective

To assess the sound reducing characteristics of modern incubators in the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) and to better characterize auditory and language exposures for NICU infants.

Study design

Sound frequency spectral analysis was conducted on language and noise audio acquired simultaneously inside and outside incubators located in the NICU.

Results

Sound transmission into the incubators was nonuniform. Very low-frequency sounds (<100 Hz) were unattenuated or even slightly amplified inside the incubators. Maximal reduction was observed for low-to-mid frequencies (300–600 Hz) and high frequencies (>2000 Hz), which convey important language information.

Conclusions

Sound reductions observed across NICU incubator walls are more severe than those reported for sound transmission into the intrauterine environment, particularly for midrange frequencies that are important for language. Although incubator walls may serve as a protection against noxious noise levels, these findings reveal a potentially detrimental effect on language exposure for infants inside a NICU incubator.

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Fig. 1: Sound attenuation curves for NICU incubators.
Fig. 2: Speech energy loss inside a NICU incubator.

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Acknowledgements

This study was supported by a grant from the Center for Health, Aging and Disabilities in the College of Applied Health Sciences, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. The authors thank the Carle NICU staff for assistance with set up.

Funding

This study was supported by a grant from the Center for Health, Aging and Disabilities in the College of Applied Health Sciences, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Speech and Hearing Science, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Champaign, IL, USA

    Brian B. Monson, Jenna Rock & Molly Cull

  2. Neuroscience Program, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Champaign, IL, USA

    Brian B. Monson

  3. Carle Foundation Hospital, Urbana, IL, USA

    Vitaliy Soloveychik

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  1. Brian B. Monson
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Contributions

BBM conceptualized and designed the study, collected the data, carried out the analysis, drafted the initial manuscript, and revised the manuscript. JR collected the data, drafted the initial manuscript, and revised the manuscript. MC collected the data and revised the manuscript. VS designed the study, coordinated data collection, and revised the manuscript. All authors approved the final manuscript as submitted and agree to be accountable for all aspects of the work.

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Brian B. Monson.

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The authors have no conflicts of interest relevant to this article to disclose. The authors have no financial relationships relevant to this article to disclose. The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.

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Monson, B.B., Rock, J., Cull, M. et al. Neonatal intensive care unit incubators reduce language and noise levels more than the womb. J Perinatol 40, 600–606 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41372-020-0592-6

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41372-020-0592-6

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