Our skin is an incredibly important, multifunctional organ. It has many different functions including helping us maintain our body temperature, it assists with the excretion of water and toxins, and most importantly, protective mechanism of acting as a barrier. But in newborns, especially preterm infants, there are developmental differences in the anatomy and physiology of their skin that place them at an increased risk for skin injury. Not only is the immaturity of an infant’s skin problematic, but infants in the NICU are predisposed to skin trauma due to the life-saving monitors and equipment necessary for their care. Furthermore, infants with compromised skin integrity are at an increased risk for infection, excess water loss, absorption of toxic substances, and additional sequelae. 

On this episode, we review the basic anatomy of our skin and all of its important functions. We discuss how the skin of a term and preterm infants differs from adults and why the structural variations place infants at an increased risk for skin trauma and additional complications. The episode will be beneficial for parents of infants, especially preterm infants or those in the NICU to understand why their infant is at an increased risk for compromised skin integrity. NICU clinicians will also hear a great reminder of the anatomical and physiologic variations in infants that place them at an increased risk for skin injury.


Our NICU Roadmap: A Comprehensive NICU Journal: https://empoweringnicuparents.com/nicujournal/

NeoTech Free Samples: neotechneoshades.com

NICU Mama Hats: https://empoweringnicuparents.com/hats/

NICU Milestone Cards: https://empoweringnicuparents.com/nicuproducts/

Empowering NICU Parents Show Notes: https://empoweringnicuparents.com/episode34

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