Neonatal cold injury syndrome
Release time : 03/16/2025 09:30:01
The womb is the most comfortable room for a baby. Once a baby leaves the 37℃ human body incubator, it may get frostbite due to cold environment.
Neonatal cold injury syndrome is a high-incidence disease in the northern regions of our country, and severe cases can lead to skin hardening and organ failure in very young babies. If not properly taken care of, even a slight oversight could result in this condition! Do you truly understand neonatal cold injury syndrome? Let us enlighten you with Mama.com's explanation of what neonatal cold injury syndrome is all about! When it comes to neonatal cold injury syndrome, many mothers find themselves at a loss. What exactly is this new term? Confused mothers must not overlook neonatal cold injury syndrome; if indoor temperatures are not kept warm and proper care is not provided for your baby, your little one could indeed be affected by this disease! In medical terms, neonatal cold injury syndrome is also known as neonatal edema. It is more common during the winter and spring seasons, especially in northern provinces of our country, where its incidence and mortality rates are higher, particularly in premature infants compared to full-term infants.
Due to the relatively large surface area of newborns, and the immature thermoregulatory central nervous system.
Once long-term exposure to low temperatures without proper care, it may lead to this disease.
The disease can cause skin hardening in mild cases, and serious damage to internal organs, and even death.
Hypothesia often occurs within the first week post-birth, thus it is particularly important to provide care for infants within this period.
Consequently, neonatal cold injury syndrome poses a lethal threat to premature infants and newborns.
What is the cause of neonatal cold injury syndrome? What are these hard lumps on the baby's body? As a young mother, you may panic when encountering this situation. So, you need to truly understand how this "little demon" has attached itself to the baby.
What are the causes of neonatal cold injury syndrome? Here's what you need to know to keep your baby safe from this condition.
1. The thermoregulatory center of the fetus is not fully developed. Therefore, newborns have poor ability to regulate their body temperature, and they may suffer from physical harm if subjected to low temperatures.
2. Ineffective insulation leads to harm to the newborn, who has a large surface area and experiences greater heat loss than heat generation.
Being exposed to cold environments without timely thermal care can predispose one to certain diseases.
3. Infants who are fed inadequately have very little glycogen stored in their livers.
If the calorie intake is insufficient, it can be exhausted within 18-24 hours after birth.
Insufficient thermogenesis, when the ambient temperature decreases, may lead to hypothermia.
4. Preterm infants and low birth weight infants are at a higher risk of developing these diseases because they are born prematurely with lower body weights, have less energy reserves, and possess less ability to regulate body temperature compared to full-term infants.
5. Diseases affect neonates. If they suffer from sepsis, pneumonia, purulent meningitis, and other infectious diseases, their diet will be affected, and insufficient caloric intake will lead to decreased heat production.
This means that when the temperature drops, it becomes even more difficult to protect yourself against illness.
Symptoms of neonatal cold injury syndrome in infants include a baby who is completely chilled, exhibits a lackluster response, does not cry or move, and refuses to feed. In such cases, mothers should be vigilant; it's not merely a baby fussing or being disobedient; rather, they might have contracted neonatal cold injury syndrome.
Don't underestimate the importance of soothing a baby with gentle words; understanding the symptoms of neonatal cold injury syndrome and seeking timely medical treatment at a hospital is crucial for ensuring your child grows healthily. Let's take a look at the symptoms of neonatal cold injury syndrome, so you don't have to suffer yourself! 1. Low body temperature: The most evident symptom of neonatal cold injury syndrome is low body temperature or cold hands and feet.
Infants with this condition often have a body temperature below 35°C, and in severe cases, it can be lower than 30°C.
2. Body hard swelling masses are divided into two types: liposclerosis and edema.
The manifestation of cutaneous scleroderma is as follows: the skin adheres closely to the subcutaneous tissue, which makes it difficult to lift up, and in severe cases, the limbs are stiff and immobile, with a texture resembling hard rubber. The skin appears purplish or grayish-yellow.
Edema is predominantly localized in the skin or subcutaneous fat, and when pressed, the skin may collapse.
The hard swelling first appears on the lower limbs, thighs, and entire lower body, extending upward to the buttocks, face, and upper limbs, even to the whole body.
3. Organ dysfunction, infants with such diseases are unable to cry or move, and do not eat milk. Severe cases can also experience difficulty breathing, facial pallor, and a lack of urine.
The treatment of neonatal cold injury syndrome, mothers who encounter it should not panic. Firstly, calm their emotions, and seek treatment as early as possible to alleviate the baby's suffering.
The following treatments will not frighten you when you encounter neonatal cold injury syndrome.
There are several simple treatment methods that can help protect babies from illnesses.
"Mothers can use a common household hot water bag, add water at 50°C, wrap it in cloth outside and place it near the baby."
During the warming process, pay attention to monitoring the baby's temperature and changes in skin masses, allowing the baby to gradually return to a temperature rise of 0.5-1.0°C every 2 hours.
Additionally, the use of a warm blanket wrapping method can be employed to regulate the temperature of an electric blanket to 38-40°C. The rewarming method involves soaking in a 40°C water bath for 10-15 minutes, repeated once or twice daily.
Conditionally, you can choose to warm the baby in a cultured box or by irradiation.
2. During the warming process, nutrients are consumed by infants to generate heat via energy supply and resist cold.
Feeding by bottle can be done every 2-3 hours.
3. Seek timely medical attention, and if home care treatments are insufficient to address the condition, mothers should promptly take their baby to the hospital for diagnosis and treatment to prevent the condition from causing more harm to the baby.
The prevention of neonatal cold injury syndrome can be somewhat frightening to expectant mothers, but it is important to understand that with proper precautions, babies can avoid this disease. To prevent neonatal cold injury syndrome, it's essential to learn these key points: 1. Pay attention to prenatal care: Neonatal cold injury syndrome is more common in premature infants and those with poor physical condition. Therefore, expectant mothers must pay close attention to prenatal check-ups and enhance nutritional supplementation to prevent premature birth or complications such as asphyxia and infection.
2. Breastfeed as soon as possible, since newborns have low energy and insufficient heat production to withstand cold external conditions.
Moms should breastfeed their babies in a timely manner, providing them with energy.
3. Keep Warm: It is particularly important to keep newborns warm, wrapping them in blankets and keeping the temperature of their nursery room not lower than 24°C.
4. Closely monitor the baby's condition for babies with poor physical constitution and premature birth, closely observe their physical conditions daily, check their body temperature and skin condition.
* The medical content mentioned in this text is for reference only.
In the event of discomfort, it is advised to seek medical attention immediately. For accurate diagnosis and treatment, consult a physician in person.