Did you see the topic is "premature babies".
Topic is the gel....How much longer will you make a fool of yourself? Give it a rest....The whole whole reason for SUGAR GEL to come in front of the topic was emphasis rather than premature babies HELPED BY SUGAR GEL or Premature babies survival increased by sugar gel!
Plus why did the topic ONLY talk about how the gel was effective without introduction to how old the babies they tested were and so on? Plus the RESULTS are published so go embarrass yourself!
Researchers from New Zealand tested the gel therapy in 242 babies under their care and, based on the results, say it should now be a first-line treatment.
Same study in another article:
Sugar Gel Prevents Brain Damage In Premature Babies: The Success Of The ‘Sugar Babies’ Study
Sugar gel, when rubbed inside a premature baby's cheek, can prevent permanent brain damage as effectively as traditional, more invasive methods. PAHO/WHO, CC BY-ND 2.0
Rubbing a small amount of sugar gel on the inside of a premature baby’s cheek dramatically reduces its risk of hypoglycemic brain damage, a new study has found.
Researchers from New Zealand discovered that a simple dextrose gel, when applied to the baby’s cheek, causes enough of a glucose spike to stave off any risk for permanent brain damage, which, as a condition, occurs in one out of every 10 babies born prematurely. Among fully mature newborns, the risk drops to one in 500.
The experimenters began their study, which they’ve come to call the “sugar babies” study, as a way to compare the physiological response among premature babies with diabetics, another group that faces an increased risk for hypoglycemia. Through testing 242 babies with hypoglycemia (514 in total), the team found dextrose gel to be the cheapest, simplest method for counteracting hypoglycemia’s potentially devastating effects. At just over £1 ($1.60), the method is now being pushed as the suggested first line of defense in treating preemies’ low blood sugar.
"This is a cost-effective treatment and could reduce admissions to intensive care services, which are already working at high capacity levels,” Andy Cole, chief executive of premature baby charity, Bliss, told the BBC. Though Cole lauded the study’s findings, he conceded it’s “clear there is more research to be done to implement this treatment."
Dextrose gel has the added collateral benefit of improving breastfeeding rates among premature babies. Study leader Professor Jane Harding remarked that newborns suffering from low blood sugar are often rushed to intensive care and put on a drip; in the meantime, their nutrition comes from baby formula. The new treatment method sees mother-baby reunion much earlier, potentially eliminating the need for formula.
"The dextrose gel improves the rate of breastfeeding and we think this might be because babies stay with their mothers, and are not given formula in the first few hours to manage their hypoglycemia,” Harding said.
Below are common symptoms of hypoglycemia, according to the U.S. National Institutes of Health:
- Pale skin with a bluish tinge
- Difficulties in preserving warmness of the body
Source: Harris D, Weston P, Signal M, Chase J, Harding J. Dextrose gel for neonatal hypoglycaemia (the Sugar Babies Study): a randomised, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial. The Lancet. 2013.
Sugar Gel Prevents Brain Damage In Premature Babies: The Success Of The ‘Sugar Babies’ Study
Poster Presentations: Neonatology - Other
Pediatric Research (2011)
70, 652–652; doi:10.1038/pr.2011.877
Randomised Trial of Dextrose Gel for Treating Neonatal Hypoglycaemia: The Sugar Babies Study
D L Harris
1,
2, P J Weston
1, M R Battin
2,
3 and J E Harding
2
- 1Newborn Intensive Care, Waikato Hospital, Hamilton
- 2Liggins Institute, University of Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand
- 3Newborn Services, Auckland City Hospital, Auckland, New Zealand
Background and Aims:Neonatal hypoglycaemia is common and linked to poor neurodevelopmental outcome. There is a paucity of data to
guide treatment.
We sought to determine whether treatment with 40% dextrose gel is more effective than feeding alone in reversing hypoglycaemia in the first 48 hours after birth.
Methods: Randomised, placebo controlled, double-blinded trial comparing the incidence of treatment failure in babies randomised to receive 40%dextrose gel or placebo gel. Eligible babies were ≥35 weeks gestation and at risk for hypoglycaemia. Hypoglycaemic babies (blood glucose < 2.6mM, glucose oxidase method) were randomised, received gel 0.5ml (200mg) /kg massaged into the buccal membrane, and were encouraged to feed. Blood glucose was measured 30 minutes after treatment, and gel was repeated if hypoglycaemia persisted. Primary outcome was treatment failure, defined as blood glucose concentration < 2.6mM after two doses of gel 30 minutes apart.
Results: 514 babies were enrolled, of whom 242 (47%) were randomised, 122 to dextrose and 120 to placebo gel. The median (range) birth weight was 2870 (1590-5550) g and gestation 37 (35-42) weeks. Babies randomised to dextrose gel were half as likely to meet criteria for treatment failure (14 (11%) vs 28 (23%), p =0.01), and were also less likely to be admitted to Newborn Intensive Care for treatment of hypoglycaemia (15 (12%) vs 26 (22%), p =0.05).
Conclusion: Dextrose gel 200mg/kg is more effective than feeding alone, and should be considered for first line therapy of hypoglycaemia in late-preterm and term infants.
Pediatric Research - Abstract of article: Randomised Trial of Dextrose Gel for Treating Neonatal Hypoglycaemia: The Sugar Babies Study
