ABSTRACT
PURPOSE: The purpose of this investigation was to describe the ability of a transport mattress (TransWarmer Infant Transport Mattress), produced by Cooper Surgical (Trumbull, Connecticut), to reduce hypothermia in a group of very low birth-weight infants.
SUBJECTS: Convenience sample of 115 infants weighing less than 1500 g who were born at Women & Infants' Hospital, Providence, Rhode Island, and admitted to the neonatal intensive care unit.
DESIGN: A quality assurance study using a nonrandomized experimental design. Infants placed on the TransWarmer Infant Transport Mattress were compared with those treated with standard care.
METHODS: Charts were reviewed and data abstracted on the 115 very low birth-weight infants delivered at Women & Infants' Hospital, Providence, Rhode Island.
MAIN OUTCOME MEASURE: Hypothermia was significantly lower in the mattress group than for controls (52.5% vs 77.3% using a definition of hypothermia as body temperature less than 97.4[degrees]F, P = .01). The difference resulted despite the fact that the mattress group was at increased risk based on various risk factors, lower mean age (26 vs 28.5 wk, P = .001), a lower birth weight (876 vs 1091 g, P = .004), and a higher proportion of Apgar scores of less than 5 at 5 minutes (13.2% vs 6.4%, P = .29) compared with controls. A linear regression model adjusted for birth weight, gender, and gestational age showed that the use of the heated gel mattress raised body temperatures by a mean of 0.7[degrees]F per infant (P < .001).
PRINCIPAL RESULTS: The occurrence of hypothermia was significantly lower in the mattress group.
CONCLUSION: The results of this investigation suggest that further research of the TransWarmer Transport Mattress is warranted using an adequately powered randomized controlled trial. Information on the safety and cost-effectiveness is needed. Long-term follow-up evaluating admission temperatures and long-term outcomes is also warranted.