Parents, preparing for the birth of a baby, try to acquire everything necessary to make their baby's life as comfortable and safe as possible. The list of such devices includes a respiratory monitor for newborns.
Is a breathing monitor necessary?
This device performs automatic control over the baby’s breathing, which allows parents to be calm about their safety. This device is especially necessary for those who have a premature baby, because of its not fully developed respiratory system. Often, obstetricians themselves advise parents to purchase special devices for self-assessment of the condition of the baby.
In addition, children under the age of one year have underdeveloped central nervous and unstable respiratory systems, which often causes respiratory arrest. Similar situations often happen at night when the kids are sleeping. Moreover, during sleep this can happen repeatedly, which causes great anxiety among parents. Respiratory arrest adversely affects the state of the brain, which, if poor, can lead to sudden death syndrome.
What is SIDS?
Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS) is a medical diagnosis (medical judgment) that is made to a healthy child who dies without any reason. This tragic case does not have unambiguous scientific confirmation. According to statistics, today 0.2% of babies become victims of causeless death. Typically, respiratory arrest is recorded at night or in the morning hours.
Who is at risk?
The risk group, as a rule, includes:
- children born using cesarean section;
- newborn babies weighing less than 2 kg;
- children transferred to artificial feeding;
- infants with pathology of cardiac and respiratory activity;
- babies whose brothers and / or sisters died from SIDS.
Possible causes of SIDS
When the doctor cannot determine the reason the infant died, the child is diagnosed with “Sudden Infant Death Syndrome”. The reasons why small children die have not been identified so far.
One version of SIDS is a defect in the centers of respiration and awakening. A newborn baby with this feature is not able to respond to unusual situations. If during sleep the oxygen ceased to flow into the baby's body, then the baby may not wake up from anxiety, resulting in SIDS.
The older the child, the lower the risk of SIDS. The largest% of sudden deaths occur in two-, three-, and four-month-old babies. Among preschool children, a phenomenon such as SIDS is not recorded. Usually, after nine months of life, such concerns are removed from babies.
Probable causes of SIDS include:
- Elongation of the QT interval on the electrocardiogram. This indicator is responsible for the stability of the electric field of the heart. Elongation of the QT interval is diagnosed if the duration of the QTc exceeds 0.44 s. An increase in this value can lead to the development of dangerous cardiac arrhythmias and sudden death of the baby.
- Apnea. This is a condition when a baby has a short breath holding during sleep, which can last about 5-25 seconds. In preterm infants, respiratory arrest is more common, respectively, they require more care and attention.
- Deficiency of serotonin receptors. Lack of serotonin-trapping cells located in certain parts of the brain is a common finding at autopsy after SIDS. The lack of these cells, as a rule, is concentrated in the area of the brain responsible for cardio-respiratory synchronism (the relationship between respiration and heart rate).
- Incomplete thermoregulation. The brain cells responsible for thermoregulation mature in children by about three months of life. Shortly before this, changes in the numbers on the thermometer and an inadequate temperature response are possible. The thermometer in the children's bedroom should correspond to 18-20 ° C. Exceeding these indicators can lead to overheating of the baby, which will affect cardiac and respiratory activity and lead to sudden death.
There are other hypotheses (genetic, infectious), however, none of them can explain all cases of SIDS.
Helping the baby stop breathing
Noticing that the child suddenly stopped breathing, there is no need to panic. At this moment, parents need to get together, because the accuracy of their actions depends on whether a sudden death occurs or not. The first thing to do is to take the baby in her arms, shake it, massage the limbs and earlobes. Usually these actions are enough to make the baby breathe again. If the measures taken did not give the desired result, it is necessary to call an ambulance team, do artificial respiration and massage the chest. Only a doctor can ascertain death, and before his arrival it is necessary to continue resuscitation measures.
Of course, all actions are effective if they are timely. And therefore, the main method of combating SIDS is prevention. Parents should pay attention to the pose in which the baby falls asleep (you can not put the baby on his stomach), maintaining the optimal temperature regime, the severity and volume of the baby blanket, constantly monitoring the condition of the newborn and caring for him by the medical staff (especially in the first three months of life) .
The most important preventive measure is a respiratory monitor. Such devices can be used both in stationary and at home. For children at risk, especially with pathologies of the respiratory and cardiovascular systems, the use of a home respiratory monitor is mandatory.
Types of Breath Monitors
There are four varieties of this device, differing in design and type of execution:
- Children's breath monitor. It is installed under the baby's mattress and works in cases when the baby did not move during sleep and did not inhale for 20 seconds. A prerequisite is the baby’s sleep in a crib separately from parents, so that they do not affect the operation of the sensor.
- Mobile breath monitor for newborns. Mounted on a diaper and does not require the baby to sleep in a separate bed. If the baby does not inhale within 12 seconds, a special vibration signal will immediately work, which will be an impetus for the baby to take a breath. Indeed, for this, as a rule, just one touch on the baby is enough.
- Baby monitor with breath monitor. Combines two functions to monitor the state of crumbs. If necessary, a special signal is sent to the receiver, notifying parents of the baby's need for special attention.
- Baby monitor with breath monitor. It sends an alarm to the device monitor.
Browse Popular Models
Physiological monitors monitoring the health of newborns are becoming increasingly popular. Today on the market there is a large selection of various gadgets that measure heart rate, breathing and other vital indicators. If you take into account reviews of breathing monitors for newborns, the most noteworthy are companies such as Babysense, Snuza, Angelcare, etc.
Babysense
Babysense Respiratory Monitors (Israel) is a unique protection system for preserving the life of newborns. This device is suitable for both premature and healthy babies from birth to one year old. It can be used in maternity hospitals, children's hospitals and at home.
The device continuously monitors the baby’s body movement and respiratory rate, sending audible and visual danger signals when breathing stops for more than 20 seconds or a dangerous change in its frequency (less than 10 movements per minute).
The respiratory monitor for newborns consists of a control unit and touch panels placed between the bottom of the bed and the mattress. These sensitive elements control the movements of the baby, while they do not come into direct contact with the baby and do not limit its movement.
The device is absolutely safe for the child, approved by leading neonatal centers, and also has a registration certificate of the Ministry of Health of the Russian Federation.
Snuza
Snuza hero is an electronic breathing sensor with a sensitive piezoelectric sensor, which is located directly on the baby’s tummy and picks up any movements in the contact area. This model is equipped with a built-in vibration stimulator that can automatically “push” the baby’s breathing in case of interruption, as well as turn on the alarm when it stops. The device is ideal for children sleeping with their parents, as well as for twins lying in the same crib.
According to parents, the principle of operation of the respiratory monitor for newborns is quite simple. The leading element of the device is a small piezoelectric type sensor, closed on top with a colored protective cap. It converts the mechanical energy of muscles into electrical signals, transmitting them to the control unit, which in turn fixes the number of operations for a specific period of time and, when registering the amount below the set level, turns on the danger signal.
The device is absolutely safe. It does not emit dangerous radio waves, does not cause irritation and cannot harm the baby (for example, scratch it). According to parents, this model is able to work up to 12 months on a single battery, which is a huge plus for any electronic device.
Angelcare AC701
This is perhaps the best baby monitor, combining high quality sound and the presence of a mattress sensor - a breathing monitor that displays all the movements and breaths of the child. Its action is comparable to the operation of finger batteries, and therefore it is absolutely safe for the child. An alarm sounds after 20 seconds after the device has not detected a single movement / inspiration of the baby.
The title of the best baby monitor is also supported by the presence of a large number of additional functions:
- two-way communication;
- the presence of a night light on the children's block;
- low battery indicator;
- radius exit indicator, which is 230 m;
- a ticking signal informing how the baby is breathing;
- room temperature control;
- ECO function that saves energy and radiation;
- parent block search.
In conclusion…
Caring for the health of the baby can not be excessive. Such a device as a respiratory monitor for newborns will allow timely warning of possible problems and will ensure that the baby takes its breath in time. Indeed, respiratory arrest, even if it does not lead to death, can have various negative consequences in the future due to oxygen starvation of the brain.