Conception Pregnancy guide Birth The first year Children All Articles

Top 5 rated articles

	All the prettiest bridal hairstyles

	Honey, we need to talk: how to get your point across

	FitFlops: Work out while you walk

	Hairstyle makeovers: 3 readers get the chop

	Eat healthy for less

Team BLOG

	Dressing up, token efforts, Olly Murs and party season... This week we've discovered women can be divided into four types when it comes to fancy dress: There...

Read on

Home / Parenting / Birth

Caring for premature babies

Article in images

Immature imune system

Premature babies aren’t prepared to deal with germs: their immune system isn’t fully, if at all functional, and they need to be fully protected against microbes.

Incubators are sterile, but anyone around the baby also has to take the right precautions (washing your hands thoroughly, wearing a mask, a surgical gown, shoes and hat).

The premature baby will also be thoroughly examined by the medical team several times a day and if there is any change or symptom antibiotics will be administered to avoid the risk of infection. Minor infections can be fatal for frail premature babies.

Sarah Horrocks
21/03/2009

	Send this page to a friend

Rank this page:

Article Plan Caring for premature babies ▼

Reasons for premature birth

- Medical
- Accidental
- Socio-economic

Different stages of premature birth

- Before the 6th month
- Between the 6th and 7th month
- Between the 7th and 8th month

Problems with premature babies

- Immature respiratory system
- Immature digestive system
- Immature thermoregulatory system
- Immature imune system

Hospital care

- Incubator
- Ventilator
- Feeding tube
- Ultrasound scanning
- How long for?
- The parents' role
- Skin-on-skin contact

As your premature baby grows up...

- The first year
- Later on

» See all our readers' comments (0)

Email this page to a friend

Latest…

09/11/2009

Guides

Videos

	Cervical stitching (cerclage) Cervical stitching is a procedure for pregnant women who have a weak cervix...

	Gestational diabetes Some pregnant women experience diabetes during their pregnancy: this is known as gestational diabetes...

	Pelvic floor exercises Pelvic floor exercises restore the strength and elasticity of the pelvic floor...

	Getting back in shape after pregnancy Find out what you should be doing over the weeks following the...

See all Parenting guides

	First Aid For Parents - could you save your child's life? If your baby or child choked or stopped breathing, would you know what to do to save their life?

See all Parenting videos

This week: Food & Drink Special : recipes from A to Z, by country, by duration, by type - Surnames - E-cards
auFeminin Group:	auFeminin - enFemenino - alFemminile - goFeminin - soFeminine - Teemix - Joyce - Voyage Bons Plans - Santé AZ - Marmiton - Marmiton.es - Marmiton.it - Marmikid - Tiboo - Recettes de Valérie - Noms de famille - Toutes les villes - Parcours-Gourmand - Onmeda - HerVietnam

Immature imune system - Caring for premature babies

Immature imune system