An infant is being discharged at 48 hours of age. The parents ask ...

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An infant is being discharged at 48 hours of age. The parents ask how the infant should be bathed this first week home. Which is the best recommendation by the nurse?
 
  a. Bathe the infant daily with mild soap.
  b. Bathe the infant daily with an alkaline soap.
  c. Bathe the infant two or three times this week with mild soap.
  d. Bathe the infant two or three times this week with plain water.

Question 2

The nurse quickly dries the newborn after delivery. This is to conserve the newborn's body heat by preventing heat loss through which method?
 
  a. Radiation
  b. Conduction
  c. Convection
  d. Evaporation

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Answer to Question 1

ANS: D
A newborn infant's skin has a pH of approximately 5. This acidic pH has a bacteriostatic effect. The parents should be taught to use only plain warm water for the bath and to bathe the infant no more than two or three times the first 2 weeks. Soaps are alkaline. They will alter the acid mantle of the infant's skin, providing a medium for bacterial growth.

Answer to Question 2

ANS: D
Evaporation is the loss of heat through moisture. The newborn should be quickly dried of the amniotic fluid. Radiation is the loss of heat to a cooler solid object. The cold air from either the window or the air conditioner will cool the walls of the incubator and subsequently the body of the newborn. Conduction involves the loss of heat from the body because of direct contact of the skin with a cooler object. Convection is similar to conduction but is the loss of heat aided by air currents.