Comparing the Effects of Swaddled and Conventional Bathing Methods on Body Temperature and Crying Duration in Premature Infants: A Randomized Clinical Trial

Introduction: Maintaining body temperature and reducing stress are important challenges in bathing preterm infants. Swaddle bathing, whichincludes in itself the principles of developmental care, can be used as a low-stress and appropriate bathing method for premature infants. Giventhe limitations of the researches carried out on this bathing method,the present study was conducted with the aim of comparing the effects of swaddled and conventional bathing methods on body temperature and cryingduration in premature infants. Methods: In this randomized clinical trial study, 50 premature infants hospitalized in Neonatal IntensiveCare Unit (NICU) who were eligible for the study were divided by random allocation into two experimental and control groups. The infants in theexperimental group were bathed using the swaddle bathing method and theinfants in the control group were bathed using the conventional bathingmethod. Body temperature was measured 10 minutes before and 10 minutesafter the bath. To record the crying, the infantsʹ faces were filmedduring the bath. The data were analyzed using chi-squared test,independent t-test, paired t-test and Mann-Whitney U test. Results: Themean temperature loss was significantly less in the swaddle-bathednewborns compared to the conventionally-bathed newborns. Furthermore,crying time was significantly less in the experimental group than in thecontrol group. Conclusion: Given the positive effect of swaddled bathingin maintaining body temperature and reducing stress, it can be used asan appropriate bathing method in NICU.