Polyethylene Bag vs Prewarmed Blanket for Preventing Neonatal Hypothermia During Transfer

Premature babies can lose body heat quickly after birth, which can lead to serious health problems. This study compared two methods to keep premature babies warm while they were being moved from the delivery room to the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU): wrapping the baby in a plastic bag (polyethylene bag) versus wrapping the baby in a prewarmed blanket, which is the usual method used in many hospitals. Sixty-seven premature babies weighing 2000 grams or less were randomly assigned to receive one of these two methods. The researchers measured the babies' body temperature, heart rate, oxygen levels, and blood sugar at three points: right after birth, during the transfer, and after arriving at the NICU. The goal was to find out whether the plastic bag method was more effective than the blanket method at preventing low body temperature (hypothermia) in these vulnerable babies.

Inclusion Criteria: * Premature neonates born before 37 weeks of gestation * Birth weight ≤2000 grams * Born in the obstetric-surgical unit of the participating public hospital and requiring immediate intrahospital transfer to the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) * Written informed consent provided by parents or legal guardians Exclusion Criteria: * Major congenital malformations * Need for immediate resuscitation procedures incompatible with application of the assigned intervention * Parents or legal guardians unable or unwilling to provide informed consent