ArticleEarly human development2021
Impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on developmental care practices for infants born preterm.
Article in Early human development, 2021. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 18 papers.
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Who cites it
18 citing papers in PubMed.
- Association Between Neonatal Pain Exposure and Neurodevelopmental Outcomes in Very Preterm Infants During the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Retrospective Observational Study.Children (Basel, Switzerland) · 2026Article
- Promoting bonding and secure attachment in the NICU to improve parent-infant mental health: recommendations for clinical practice.Journal of perinatology : official journal of the California Perinatal Association · 2026Review
- Skin-to-Skin Holding in Relation to White Matter Microstructure in Infants Born Preterm.Neurology · 2025Observational
- Skin-to-skin holding in relation to white matter connectivity in infants born preterm.medRxiv : the preprint server for health sciences · 2025Article
- Optimal presence: enhancing parent integration to maximize neurodevelopmental outcomes in preterm infants.Pediatric research · 2024Review
- Inpatient Skin-to-skin Care Predicts 12-Month Neurodevelopmental Outcomes in Very Preterm Infants.The Journal of pediatrics · 2024Article
- Did the COVID-19 Pandemic Affect the Stress Levels among the Mothers of Premature Infants? A Narrative Review of the Present State of Knowledge, Prevention Strategies, and Future Directions.International journal of environmental research and public health · 2024Review
- Investigating Relations between the NICU Speech Environment and Weight Gain in Infants Born Very Preterm.American journal of perinatology · 2024Article
- Maternal mental health and engagement in developmental care activities with preterm infants in the NICU.Journal of perinatology : official journal of the California Perinatal Association · 2023Article
- The Effect of Maternal SARS-CoV-2 Infection on Neonatal Outcome.Children (Basel, Switzerland) · 2023Article
- Impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on maternal mental health, early childhood development, and parental practices: a global scoping review.BMC public health · 2023Article
- Exploring the impact of the COVID-19 environment on nursing delivery of family-centred care in a paediatric hospital.Journal of advanced nursing · 2023Article
- Parents' experiences regarding neonatal care during the COVID-19 pandemic: country-specific findings of a multinational survey.BMJ open · 2022Article
- Adaptation of infant mental health services to preterm infants and their families receiving neonatal intensive care unit services during the COVID-19 pandemic.Infant mental health journal · 2022Article
- Neonates and COVID-19: state of the art : Neonatal Sepsis series.Pediatric research · 2022Review
- Effective Communication About Pregnancy, Birth, Lactation, Breastfeeding and Newborn Care: The Importance of Sexed Language.Frontiers in global women's health · 2022Article
- Neonatal care during the COVID-19 pandemic - a global survey of parents' experiences regarding infant and family-centred developmental care.EClinicalMedicine · 2021Article
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6 authors.
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Abstract
objectivesTo assess the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on rates of hospital visitation and rates and durations of developmental care practices for infants born preterm.
methodsWe analyzed electronic medical record data from 129 infants born at less than 32 weeks gestational age (GA) cared for in the Lucile Packard Children's Hospital neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) in a COVID-19-affected period (March 8, 2020 to Nov 30, 2020, n = 67) and the analogous period in 2019 (n = 62). Rates of family visitation and of family- and clinical staff-delivered developmental care were compared across cohorts, adjusting for covariates.
resultsFamilies of infants visited the hospital at nearly half of the rate during 2020 as during 2019 (p = 0.001). Infants experienced developmental care less frequently in 2020 vs. 2019 (3.0 vs. 4.3 activities per day; p = 0.001), resulting in fewer minutes per day (77.5 vs. 130.0; p = 0.001). In 2020, developmental care activities were 5 min shorter, on average, than in 2019, p = 0.001. Similar reductions occurred in both family- and staff-delivered developmental care. Follow-up analyses indicated that effects persisted and even worsened as the pandemic continued through fall 2020, despite relaxation of hospital visitation policies.
conclusionsThe COVID-19 pandemic has negatively impacted family visitation and preterm infant developmental care practices in the NICU, both experiences associated with positive health benefits. Hospitals should create programs to improve family visitation and engagement, while also increasing staff-delivered developmental care. Careful attention should be paid to long-term follow up of preterm infants and families.
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