Comparision of the Physiologic Parameters of Preterm Neonates with a Respiratory Distress Syndrome in Prone and Supine Positions

Changes in physiological indicators are important symptoms in a respiratory distress syndrome (RDS). The aim of this study was to compare the physiological indicators of preterm neonates with RDS in prone and supine positions.
This longitudinal descriptive study was conducted in neonative intensive care unit (NICU) of Fatemieh Hospital in Hamedan city in 2016. Forty-five preterm neonates with RDS (gestational age of 32-35 weeks and birth age of 1-7 days) were randomly selected. Each neonate was placed 120 minutes in prone and then in supine positions. After 30 minutes in each position, arterial blood oxygen saturation (SpO2), heart rate (HR) and respiratory rate (RR) were measured three times with 30-minute intervals. Data were analyzed using repeated measurement ANOVA by the SPSS 20 software. The level of confidence was 0.95.
In both positions, the mean of SpO2 was significantly different between the three times of measurments (P In prone, SpO2 increased but RR was decreased after 60 minutes and HR did not change. In supine, only SpO2 was decreased after 60 minutes. So, placing preterm neonates with RDS less than 60 minutes in supine or prone could prevent changes in the physiological indicators.