Analgesic effect of kangaroo position method versus sucrose during heel punctures in newborn: randomized clinical trial

Abstract

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: 25% sucrose and kangaroo position are effective for neonatal analgesia in single procedures and sucrose is also effective in repeated procedures. Behavioral and physiological responses and adverse effect on newborns submitted to kangaroo position or 25% sucrose for analgesia were compared in two heel punctures applied during the first hours of life. METHODS: Randomized clinical trial with 80 newborns and 40 mothers. Data were collected during two heel punctures. The kangaroo position was performed for three minutes before, during and three minutes after the punctures. Oral 25% sucrose (0.5 mL/kg) was administered two minutes before the punctures and the newborns were kept in a crib. Each data collection was divided into nine phases. The facial action, crying and heart rate data were analyzed using descriptive and comparative analyses. Facial actions, assessed by the Newborn Facial Coding System scale, was used to test the hypothesis. The frequency of gastric side effects was calculated. Ethical aspects were preserved. RESULTS: Facial actions did not differ (p>0.05) between groups in the two data collections. There were no relevant changes in heart rate between and within groups. The newborns in the kan-