Yawning and behavioral states in premature infants

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Assessment and Evaluation of the High Risk Neonate: The NICU Network Neurobehavioral Scale
19:15

Assessment and Evaluation of the High Risk Neonate: The NICU Network Neurobehavioral Scale

Published on: August 25, 2014

Fiorenza Giganti1, Marie J Hayes, Manjapra R Akilesh

  • 1Psychology Department, University of Florence, Florence, Italy.

Developmental Psychobiology
|September 27, 2002
PubMed

Insights

Premature infants (30-35 weeks PCA) yawn during sleep, indicating increased motor activity. Yawning in the drowse state may signal a transition to wakefulness or active sleep.

Area of Science:

  • Neonatal Development
  • Behavioral Neuroscience
  • Sleep Science

Background:

  • Premature infants in neonatal intensive care units (NICUs) exhibit various sleep-wake states.
  • Spontaneous yawning is a common behavior observed in infants, but its functional significance remains unclear.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate the relationship between spontaneous yawning and behavioral states in premature infants.
  • To determine if yawning is associated with changes in motoric activation and state transitions.

Main Methods:

  • Observation of low-risk premature infants (30-35 weeks PCA) in NICU home incubators.
  • Videorecordings analyzed for behavioral states (quiet sleep, active sleep, wake, drowse) and contextual behaviors around yawn events.
  • Sequence analysis of behavioral states preceding and following yawns.

Main Results:

  • Yawning periods were associated with higher levels of motoric activation compared to non-yawn periods.
  • Yawns were not observed during quiet sleep.
  • Yawning in the drowse state predicted preceding state changes (often wakefulness), while non-yawning drowse states predicted subsequent state changes (wakefulness or active sleep).

Conclusions:

  • Spontaneous yawning in premature infants is linked to increased behavioral arousal, irrespective of the specific sleep-wake state.
  • The drowse state appears unstable, and yawning may stabilize it by preceding state transitions.

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