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The influence of equipment weights on neonatal daily weight measurements
1Neonatal Intensive Care Unit, Southern New Hampshire Medical Center, Nashua 03061, USA.
Purpose:
To determine the weight of commonly used pieces of neonatal equipment that can affect the accuracy of daily weight measurements.
Design And Sample:
Twenty-one pieces of equipment commonly attached to the neonate at the time of daily weight measurement were selected for analysis. Three examples of each piece of equipment were weighed; each one was weighed three times. All weights were obtained using a digital electronic diaper scale calibrated to 1 gm accuracy and precision.
Main Outcome Variable:
Average weights for pieces of routine nursery equipment.
Results:
Equipment weights ranged from 1 gm for an umbilical catheter to 23 gm for a pulse oximeter probe. There was no variation among the individual examples for 19 of the 21 pieces of equipment. There was a small variation in weight for the pulse oximeter probe and the arm board, but these variations were of no clinical significance.