Introduction:

exposure to painful stimuli and stress in the neonatal stage, without correct treatment, has short and long-term consequences. Proper diagnosis is a challenge since clinical scales are subjective, and we require more objective screening tools and a better ability to interpret neonatal discomfort/pain. Newborn Infant Parasympathetic Evaluation (NIPE™) is a non-invasive technology for continuous pain monitoring in neonates, recently developed given the difficulty to objectify pain using conventional methods in clinical practice. This technology is based on the analysis of heart rate variability (HR), which allows us to approximate the activity of the parasympathetic system.

Objectives:

the objective of this research was to assess discomfort in a newborn pig model (NB) and in human neonates exposed to nociceptive maneuvers with the use of non-invasive technology (NIPE), in the maternity ward of the University Hospital.

Material and methods:

an observational, longitudinal study was carried out in 6 NB pigs, anesthetized, hemodynamically monitored and subjected to a major surgical procedure (left lateral thoracotomy with cardiac approach, pericardiostomy and right trans ventricular pulmonary vascular access) and 12 minimally invasive procedures, from clinical practice. routine such as BCG vaccination, hemoglucotest and screening, which generate a nociceptive stimulus in 8 healthy term newborns. Healthy term newborns (GA between 37-41 weeks plus 6 days) admitted to the mother-child joint accommodation were included, We excluded those NB patients who presented some pathology or whose parents did not accept participation in the study.

Results:

HR variability was compared using automated detection (NIPETM) for objective estimation of pain/discomfort. It was compared in the clinic with a validated and widely used scale in neonates: Premature Infant Pain Profile (PIPP). We used the Spearman’s correlation, the Kruskall-Wallis test or the Chi square test with Fisher’s correction to assess the association between NIPE™ variables and HR, as needed. A negative correlation was found between HR and NIPETM for both the group of neonates. humans (r=-1; p=0.008) and for the animal model (r=-0.6; p=0.0004). No significant association was found between NIPETM and the PIPP scale. The variation between pre- and post-stimulus NIPE™ values in human NBs was significant (p=0.008).

Conclusions:

we conclude that in both scenarios explored, NIPE™ values decrease when faced with nociceptive stimuli and changes in HR are related to its values, regardless of the species or the aggressiveness of the maneuver. This paper is the first at a national level to incorporate the use of this technology, we believe it will have an impact on the way pain is assessed and addressed by healthcare and experimental teams.

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