It's is almost time for the annual March of Dimes March for Babies!  Only 77 days to go! 



The local event will take place at Sea World of San Antonio on April 14, 2012.  Many of our NICU grads and their families will be participating, along with some of our Neonatologists, NNPs, and other NICU staff! 

If you are interested in finding out more about the March for Babies...how you can participate, join a team, form a team, or donate, check out:  http://www.marchforbabies.org/

We hope to see you there!



Julie Hudson, MSN, RN

NCBH NICU

PS>  Are you one of our NICU grad families?  Do you have a team?  Share you team name here in the comments section!

I know the kiddos in Team Prayers Granted!  http://www.marchforbabies.org/s_team_page.asp?SeId=1745469&si=

Caffeine....not in the coffee or Mt. Dew form.....is a really common part of a premature infant's medication regime in the NICU.  Caffeine, you say, really???

Caffeine Citrate is a stimulant that is used to treat apnea of prematurity.  If your baby was a preemie, especially, an extremely low birthweight (ELBW) neonate, then he probably was on caffeine therapy for awhile.  According to research, it is a safe therapy and it works!  We've seen it ourselves in the NICU.

An article was just published this month with some interesting long-term data that was not previously available.  The research demonstrates that the effects of caffeine therapy seem to lessen over time......."In previously reported results from the randomized, placebo-controlled Caffeine for Apnea of Prematurity (CAP) trial, newborns who received caffeine therapy had a significantly lower rate of death or disability by 18 to 21 months, driven by lower rates of cerebral palsy and cognitive delay.But by age 5, the difference in death or disability became nonsignificant" (Neale, T., 2012).

The research continues and more long-term data will come from these studies, but for now, we know that caffeine therapy works on our little patients.  As stated in the article:  "This trial also highlights how fortunate preterm patients have been in the routine use of caffeine, a drug previously untested in newborns. All along, neonatologists were using the first safe neuroprotective agent in this vulnerable population," (Neale, T., 2012).

See the link below to read the full article.

Enjoy your week!

Julie Hudson, MSN, RN

NCBH NICU

 

Quotations and Article can be found here:

"Caffeine Benefits for Preemies Mostly Gone by Age 5" By Todd Neale, Senior Staff Writer, MedPage Today

As many of you are putting away holiday decorations and enjoying the unseasonably warm temperatures this week, don't let this warm Texas winter weather fool you...RSV and Flu season is still here!

Unfortunately, I heard from several NICU graduate families over the holidays who were fighting off various "bugs" this year.  So, please be sure to take precautions with your little one.  What can you do?

1. Be sure to get your baby's Synagis shot on-time (if he/she is receiving them).

2. Lots...and lots...and lots...of handwashing!

3. Avoid large crowds (as much as possible).

4. Clean surface areas around your home with disinfectants frequently.

5.  Do not allow anyone with cold or flu symptoms around your high-risk baby.

Check out these links for symptom information and recent RSV stats:

http://www.cdc.gov/rsv/about/symptoms.html

http://txpeds.org/sites/txpeds.org/files/documents/RSV-and-Flu-11262011.pdf

Stay Healthy!

Julie Hudson, MSN, RN

NCBH NICU

Every year I get an email showing the statistics related to our Baptist Moms and Kids website. Guess what?  The NICU Blog is the 4th most visited page on the site!!  This is up from #9 last year!   Wow!

So, how about helping me get this Blog to number one for 2012?  If you are reading the NICU Blog, please click on the "comments" link and let's get some conversations started!  Ask questions or share advice....we want to hear form you!  I think we can get to number one by this time next year...what do you think?



Happy Holidays!

Julie Hudson, MSN, RN

It is the season of gift-giving....and it is also a busy baby shower season!  But, what about gift-giving to a family whose baby is in the NICU?  Many people find this to be a challenge because the baby is too small or too ill for clothing, toys, etc. and no one knows what size the baby will be by the time he/she gets to go home.  Our NICU parents, however, still need all of the wonderful things that are typically received at a shower.  So, I did a little research (and based on a little NICU RN experience), I came up with a few suggestions for you:

*NICU-specific or Preemie memory books, scrapbook kits, etc. (These are available online through several resources.)



*Personalized receiving blankets....many times these can be used in the baby's isolette while in the hospital and they add a personal touch to his/her bed.



*Gift cards....for use later when baby comes home or for restaurants near the hospital since the parents will be there so often!



*Gas cards!  For many families, the daily travel to and from the hospital really adds up.







What else can you suggest?  I'm sure that some of our NICU Grad families have some great ideas, so drop me an email (by clicking on my name below) or click on the "comments" link.







Happy Holidays!



Julie Hudson, MSN, RN



NCBH NICU