Nursery care of the newborn with malformation syndrome

Congenital malformations are not so rare, and represent a relevant challenge to health care providers. We delineate a methodology for the clinical approach to the malformed newborn, that takes into account the needs of the patient as single person and as part of a familiar and social context. We consider first the medical problem that the neonatologists face in the nursery and neonatal intensive care unit regarding clinical assistance, diagnosis, parent counselling and hospital discharge. Then we focus on the periodic follow-up, and the role of the primary care physician and the specialist in the assistance of this patients.