Weighted Blankets With Infants With NAS

TriHealth

Status: Completed

Conditions: Neonatal Abstinence Syndrome

Treatments: Other: Non-Weighted Blanket; Other: Weighted Blanket

Study type: Interventional

Funder types: Other

Identifiers

NCT03113656

17-008

Details and patient eligibility

About

Infants with neonatal abstinence syndrome (NAS) who are cared for in a Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) often display symptoms including hyperactivity, irritability, jitteriness, poor feeding, and poor sleep patterns. The recommended first line of treatment to relieve these symptoms involves nonpharmacological interventions. The purpose of the current pilot study is to provide preliminary data to assist in the design of a larger scale study to examine one nonpharmacological intervention, weighted blankets. The pilot study will assess the feasibility of a cross-over randomized controlled design to study the impact of a weighted blanket on infants' symptoms of NAS.

The aims of the study are:

Aim1: To determine the feasibility of recruiting patients for a study evaluating the use of weighted blankets in the care of infants with NAS Aim 2: To determine the feasibility and safety of the study procedures Aim 3: To examine whether there is clinical benefit to using weighted blankets for the treatment of symptoms in infants with NAS.

After informed consent is obtained, infants will be randomized to have either a weighted blanket or a non-weighted blanket placed on them first. A cross-over design will be used so all infants will experience both the non-weighted and weighted blankets. Thirty minutes before each feeding, baseline vital signs and Finnegan score will be obtained. Then, a blanket (weighted or non-weighted) will be placed on the infant for 30 minutes. Infants will be directly monitored and on heart rate/respiratory rate monitors while the blanket is applied. Vital signs and Finnegan scores will be obtained at the end of 30 minutes of blanket placement, infants will be fed, and vital signs and Finnegan scores will be obtained again 30 minutes after the blanket was removed. Descriptive statistics will be used to determine the enrollment rate and feasibility of the protocol. Nonparametric statistics will be used to compare total Finnegan scores for infants with the weighted blanket applied compared to infants with a non-weighted blanket applied. Changes in Finnegan scores will be examined to estimate an effect size to use in a power analysis for a future larger effectiveness study.

Enrollment: 16 patients

Sex: All

Ages: 37+ weeks old

Volunteers: No Healthy Volunteers

Inclusion criteria

• Admitted to the NICU
• Gestational age > 37 weeks
• Positive maternal drug screen at delivery

Exclusion criteria

• Clinical staff does not give permission to enroll the patient
• Had intrauterine growth restriction (IUGR)
• Has any medical diagnosis in addition to NAS diagnosis
• Has a weight below the 10th percentile

Trial design

Primary purpose: Other

Allocation: Randomized

Interventional model: Crossover Assignment

Masking: None (Open label)

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16 participants in 2 patient groups

Weighted Blanket First

Experimental group

Description:

This group will receive the Weighted Blanket first and then the Non-weighted blanket

Treatment:

Other: Weighted Blanket

Other: Non-Weighted Blanket

Non-weighted Blanket First

Experimental group

Description:

This group will receive the Non-weighted Blanket first and then the Weighted blanket

Treatment:

Other: Weighted Blanket

Other: Non-Weighted Blanket