Fig. 174.—Quilted robe, with hood, for the premature baby.
The care of this frail little body practically resolves itself into:
- 1. Maintaining a normal body temperature.
- 2. Promoting and maintaining normal respirations.
- 3. Supplying adequate and suitable nourishment.
- 4. Conserving his strength.
- 5. Preventing infection.
Fig. 175.—Premature baby in basket lined with quilted pad; wearing quilted robe and being fed from a Boston feeder. The blanket is turned back showing hot-water bag. (From photograph taken at Johns Hopkins Hospital.)
To maintain a normal body temperature it is necessary to give special thought to the baby’s clothing, bed and room. He should be oiled with warm olive oil and entirely wrapped in cotton batting or flannel or enveloped in a quilted garment, with hood attached, made of cheese-cloth or flannel and cotton batting. (Fig. [174].) Diapers are often omitted in caring for very feeble babies, a pad of cotton being slipped under the buttocks instead as this may be changed with less disturbance to the baby than a diaper.
Fig. 176.—Model of improvised bed for premature baby: closely woven clothes basket with padded bottom and four, flannel-covered bottles of hot water attached to the sides. Thermometer and feeder are shown in basket. (By courtesy of Dr. Alan Brown, Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto.)
His bed consists of a box or basket, with the bottom well padded with several inches of cotton, a small pillow or a soft blanket folded to the proper size, covered with rubber or oiled muslin and a cotton sheet. The sides of the basket should be lined with heavy quilted material (Fig. [175]), to shut out drafts and help to preserve an even temperature of the air immediately around the baby. A flannel covered hot-water bag at 110° F. may be placed beside the baby, or two, three or four glass bottles, each holding about a pint, containing water at 100° F. and securely stoppered, may be hung in the corners of the basket. (Fig. [176].) A thermometer should hang in the basket also, and the temperature kept between 80° F. and 90° F. It is easier to keep the temperature even if the bottles are filled in rotation instead of all at the same time.