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Updated: Dec 18, 2025

Transcutaneous Microcirculatory Imaging in Preterm Neonates
Published on: December 31, 2015
Temperature instability in infants with trisomy 21 in the neonatal intensive care unit
Victoria Surma1, V Peter Nagraj2, Karen D Fairchild3
1Department of Pediatrics, Division of Pediatric Critical Care, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD, USA.
Background:
Temperature instability has been observed in infants with trisomy 21 (T21) in the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) but has not been described in the literature.
Methods:
All infants with T21 in the NICU 2011-2017 with at least 2 days of temperatures when ≥36 weeks PMA and not receiving external thermoregulation, and 2:1 matched controls were included. Prevalence and number of temperatures < 36 and >38 °C and infection workups were compared.
Results:
Hypothermia and hyperthermia were more common among T21 infants (n = 61) vs. controls: hypothermia 30% vs. 11% (p < 0.01); hyperthermia 16% vs. 8% (p = 0.13). Infants with T21 were more likely to have infection workups at the time of temperature instability (16% vs. 6%) but only one of ten workups was diagnostic of infection.
Conclusions:
Temperature instability without infection is common among infants with T21 in the NICU.
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