Nghe An Obstetrics and Pediatrics Hospital: Saving a critically ill newborn baby thanks to hypothermia technique
(Baonghean.vn) - In recent days, doctors at the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit, Nghe An Obstetrics and Pediatrics Hospital have continuously and successfully applied the active hypothermia technique, saving the lives of two newborn babies who had suffered from brain hypoxia and ischemia.
On December 14, 2020,Nghe An Obstetrics and Pediatrics Hospitalreceived emergency care for a full-term newborn NVT (3 hours old, weighing 2.8 kg, in Duc Tho district, Ha Tinh province). The child was admitted to the hospital in a state of lethargy, severe respiratory failure, cyanosis, decreased muscle tone, and generalized convulsions.
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| Newborn baby saved by doctors at Nghe An Obstetrics and Pediatrics Hospital thanks to hypothermia technique. Photo: Hoang Yen |
Neonatal resuscitation teamNghe An Obstetrics and Pediatrics Hospitalquickly consulted and performed active hypothermia techniques for the child. At the same time, the child was supported with mechanical ventilation, sedation, maintained with vasopressors, antibiotics, complete nutritional infusion, and closely monitored vital signs.
After a period of intensive treatment, the child progressed well, was alert, able to breastfeed, and moved normally. The child had an MRI scan of the brain to check for brain damage with positive results. After more than 2 weeks of treatment, the child was stable, breastfed independently, and was discharged from the hospital.
Applying this technique, on December 30, 2020, the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit continued to receive the case of a baby named D.HH (Dien Chau) transferred from Dien Chau District Hospital at 2 hours old. The baby's mother underwent emergency cesarean section by district doctors due to signs of acute fetal distress. Immediately after birth, the baby was cyanotic, did not cry and had signs of neurological convulsions in both legs. Cardiopulmonary resuscitation was performed at the district hospital and transferred to the Obstetrics and Pediatrics Hospital immediately after.
At the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit, the baby was given active hypothermia to protect the brain from damage. After a period of intensive treatment, the baby's health has improved very well. The baby has been able to return to his mother, breathe on his own, breastfeed on his own, and does not need to be fed through a tube.
Hypothermia is an active cooling technique that helps reduce and control body temperature, causing the body to enter a state of hibernation, reducing metabolic needs and oxygen consumption to a minimum. This is a complementary method to emergency methods, improving mortality rates, aiming to restore damage and protect brain cells, minimizing neurological sequelae for children.
When applying this technique, the baby's body temperature will be strictly controlled at 33-34 degrees Celsius for 72 hours, then the body temperature will be gradually warmed to 37 degrees. This method is only performed on newborn patients admitted to the hospital within the first 6 hours after birth.
The two children NVT and D.HH were successfully treated with hypothermia because they were promptly transferred to Nghe An Obstetrics and Pediatrics Hospital within 6 hours of birth. This was the golden time for doctors and nurses to perform hypothermia to save the brain and life of the children. The application of this advanced technique at Nghe An Obstetrics and Pediatrics Hospital has opened up treatment opportunities for newborns with neonatal encephalopathy due to hypoxia and ischemia./.
