Temperature differences during sleep between fullterm and preterm neonates at matched post-conceptional ages

• Published in: Clinical neurophysiology 2003, Vol.114 (1), p.17-22
• Main Authors: Scher, Mark S, Steppe, Doris A, Salerno, Dawn G, Beggarly, Marquita E, Banks, David L
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Biological and medical sciences; Body Temperature - physiology; Case-Control Studies; Diseases of mother, fetus and pregnancy; Dysmaturity; Electroencephalogram-sleep; Electroencephalography; Gestational Age; Gynecology. Andrology. Obstetrics; Humans; Infant, Newborn; Infant, Premature - physiology; Medical sciences; Neonate; Pregnancy. Fetus. Placenta; Prematurity; Rectum; SIDS; Skin Temperature - physiology; Sleep Stages - physiology; Temperature
• ISSN: 1388-2457; 1872-8952
• DOI: 10.1016/S1388-2457(02)00319-X

Objective: Altered physiologic behaviors during sleep have been described for healthy preterm neonates at post-conceptional fullterm ages. These differences may reflect brain dysmaturity as a result of conditions of prematurity. The present study examines if differences in state-specific temperature changes exist in a healthy preterm cohort as another expression of brain dysmaturity. Methods: Rectal and skin temperatures during sleep state transitions are reported in 59 asymptomatic post-conceptional age term infants, comparing 25 full term and 34 preterm infants. Three-hour 24-channel electroencephalogram (EEG)-sleep studies were recorded for each child. One of 4 sleep states were assigned for each of 7339 min, based on both cerebral and non-cerebral measures. For each study, average rectal and skin temperatures for each sleep state were calculated. Repeated measures MANOVA were performed using 4 explanatory variables, average skin and rectal temperatures and variance of rectal and skin temperatures, comparing preterm/fullterm status and 4 sleep states. Results: Rectal temperature differences between neonatal cohorts during specific sleep states were noted: F=8.58, P