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Aim To assess changes in skin conductance during retinopathy of prematurity screening and to study the correlation between the skin conductance and a validated pain scale. Methods Prospective observational study. Fifty‐three eye examinations were performed in 32 preterm infant candidates for retinopathy of prematurity screening. Outcome measures were changes in Premature Infant Pain Profile‐Revised (PIPP‐R) scale and number of skin conductance fluctuations. Results There was a significant increase from baseline in the number of skin conductance fluctuations and PIPP‐R during the procedure. The maximum value of number of skin conductance fluctuations was 0.64 ± 0.44 peaks/sec, and the maximum value of PIPP‐R was 10.8 ± 3.3. A correlation between the skin conductance and PIPP‐R was not found at any time during the eye examination. Repeated measures correlation analyses showed only a moderate positive correlation between PIPP‐R and number of skin conductance fluctuation values. Conclusion There were significant changes in both PIPP‐R and number of skin conductance fluctuations during retinopathy of prematurity screening, reaffirming that this procedure is painful and stressful. The number of skin conductance fluctuations and PIPP‐R are not significantly correlated, which likely reflects that these parameters evaluate different but complementary aspects of neonatal pain responses.

Non-invasive ventilation (NIV) is now considered the first-line treatment for respiratory distress syndrome in preterm infants. We aimed to evaluate the rates of non-invasive ventilation failure rate in very preterm infants, as well as to identify its predictors and associated outcomes. We designed a single-center retrospective cohort study including infants ≤32 weeks gestational age and ≤1500 g. The NIV failure was defined as the need for intubation at <72 h of life. After applying inclusion and exclusion criteria, 154 patients were included in the study, with a mean GA of 29.7 ± two weeks. The NIV failure rate was 16.2% (n = 25) and it was associated with lower bronchopulmonary dysplasia (BPD)-free survival (OR 0.08; 95% CI 0.02–0.32) and higher incidence of intraventricular hemorrhage > II (OR 6.22; 95% CI 1.36–28.3). These infants were significantly smaller in GA and weight. Higher FiO2 during resuscitation (OR 1.14; 95% CI 1.06–1.22) and after surfactant administration (OR 1.17; 95% CI 1.05–1.31) represented independent risk factors for NIV failure. In conclusion, NIV failure is frequent and it could be predicted by a higher oxygen requirement during resuscitation and a modest response to surfactant therapy. Importantly, this NIV failure is associated with worse clinical outcomes.