Measurements of Transepidermal Water Loss on Newborn Infants

Sedin, Gunnar; Hammarlund, K; Nilsson, Gert; Strömberg, Bo; Öberg, Peter

doi:10.1016/s0095-5108(18)30886-8

Cited by 83 publications

(37 citation statements)

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“…Only minor adjustments were needed during the measurement period. The power requir ements of the heater were determin ed by inserting a watt meter betw een the radiant heater and the electric mains outlet, and the power consumption was betw een 330 and 660 W. At this level of power consumption, the method for measurement of the ER is not adversely affected (15). Our finding indicate that no influence on the ER measurement occur at 627 W.…”

Section: Measurement Proceduresmentioning

confidence: 85%

“…B aum gar t et al (7) fo und tha t in critica lly ill prete rm infants nursed under a rad iant heater there was a significant increase in insensible water loss as radi ant power density increased and suggested that small infants requi re more radiant power densit y to maintain bod y temperatur e and that they incur mu ch greater insensib le water loss when compared w ith larger, more mature infan ts. Ba umgart et al (8,10) also proposed that convective air curre nts und er a radiant heater co uld be the ca use of an increase in evaporation.We have previou sly used the gradie nt method to st udy the ER from the sk in of term and pre te rm newborn infants unde r different environmental conditio ns (11)(12)(13)(14)(15). Recently we have shown th at the measurem ent techniqu e used in our study is not significa ntly influenced by the radiation from the radiant heater at the energy output levels used in this study (16 ).…”

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confidence: 84%

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confidence: 84%

“…The probe is placed on the skin surface during 1-2 min for each ER measurement. The method was used earlier in studies of water loss from the skin of newborn infants (15 During the measurements the activity state of the infant was observed and graded according to an activity scale with levels of 0 to 5 (19). Measurements were only made when the infant was asleep, or awake and calm with minor motor activity (levels 0 to 2).…”

Section: Measurement Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…We have previou sly used the gradie nt method to st udy the ER from the sk in of term and pre te rm newborn infants unde r different environmental conditio ns (11)(12)(13)(14)(15). Recently we have shown th at the measurem ent techniqu e used in our study is not significa ntly influenced by the radiation from the radiant heater at the energy output levels used in this study (16 and Rutter (17) applied the same technique to study the effect of radiant heat and claimed that radiant heat altered the resistance of the skin to water vapor diffusion, resulting in an increase in evaporative water loss.…”

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confidence: 99%

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Water Loss from the Skin of Term and Preterm Infants Nursed under a Radiant Heater

et al. 1995

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The rate of evaporalion from the skin (g/m 2 jh) was measured in 12 full-term and 16 preterm infants (gestational age 25-34 wk) both during incubator care and when nursed under a radiant heater. The method for evaporation rate measurement is noninvasive and based on determination of the water vapor pressure gradient close to the skin surface. Measurements were first made with the infant nursed in an incubator with a controlled environment with respect to humidity, temperature, and air velocity. The measurements in the term infants were performed at an ambient relative humidity (RR) of 50%, and in the preterm infants first at 50% and subsequently at 30-40%. Evaporation rate was then measured with the infant nursed under a radiant heater. In term infants, mean evaporation rate was 3.3 g/m 2 jh during incubator care (RH 50%) and 4.4 g/m 2 jh during care under the radiant heater. In preterm infants, the corresponding values were 15.5 g/m 2 jh in the incubator at RH 50%, 16.7 g/m 2 jh at RH 30-40%, and 17.9 g/m 2 j h under the radiant heater. It is concluded that the evaporative water loss from the skin depends on the ambient water vapor pressure, irrespective of whether the infant is nursed Radiant heaters are frequ ently used in the care of newb orn infants and are co nsidere d to be effec tive in rewarming infants exposed to cold stress after birth (1). One possible disad vantage of radiant heaters is that they may ca use de hy dra tion in the new born by incr easin g insensible water loss (2-8). Th e mechanism of such an increase is not understood and appro priate methods for measuring the effect of nonionizing radiat ion have been difficult to find.:In previ ous studies (2-8) co ncerning the effect of non ionizing rad iant energy, produced eit her by radiant heaters or by phot oth erapy, insensibl e wa ter loss wa s determined by ind irect methods (gravimetric methods, usu all y using the Potter sca le) , making it difficult to ascertain whether the observed increase derived fro m an increase in transep idermal or respiratory wa ter Received February 24, 1994; accepted September I , 1994. Correspondence: Professor Gunnar Sedin, Department of Pediatrics, University Chilo dren's Hospital, S-751 85 Uppsala, Sweden.Supported by grants from the Swedish Medical Research Council (Project 19X-04998), the newspaper Expressen's Prenatal Research Foundation, Stockholm, Sweden, and the Swedish Institute (fellowship for SA).lThis was one of Karen Hammarlund's last scientific contributions; she died before publication of the study.in an incubator or under a radiant heater. The higher rate of evaporation during care under a radiant heater is due to the lower ambient water vapor pressure and not to any direct effect of the nonionizing radiation on the skin. tPediatr Res 37: 233-238, 1995) Abbrev iations ER, evaporation rate PH zO , water vapor pressure RH, relative humidity HR , heart rate RR, respiratory rate RH a m b , ambient relative humidity PH ZO a m b , ambient water vapor pressure Tbody' rectal temperature T is c> ...

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Section: Measurement Proceduresmentioning

confidence: 85%

mentioning

confidence: 84%

mentioning

confidence: 84%

Section: Measurement Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%