Neonatal Intensive Care Unit

The Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) caters to the special needs of new-born and critically ill babies. With advanced technology equipment and trained healthcare personnel, NICUs offer a safe area for babies who may not be ill but need some kind of specialized nursing care.

Babies have to stay in the NICU until the neonatologist and the healthcare team feel they are ready to go home, which can take several months if the baby is born very premature depending on the condition and treatment. This is quite different from paediatric intensive care units, where patients are usually discharged when they are stable and do not need constant monitoring. Therefore, NICUs are often located in a separate or distinct region so that a true intensive care unit can be established, where the doctors, nurses, and the healthcare staff focus most of their time on the treatment and recovery of babies with serious conditions.

NICU is a special unit to treat babies who are prematurely born or very ill. As these babies can be extremely fragile, they will need advanced medical care and attention that only NICUs can offer. Here are some conditions that require a baby to be admitted to the NICU.

• Prematurity

• Early term infants

• Birth weight less than 5.5 pounds

• Lack of oxygen leading to seizures, kidney or heart failure called perinatal asphyxia

• Developmental anomalies, brain malformations, and other congenital defects

• Hereditary or genetic disorders of any kind

• Heart problems

• Sepsis (serious infections)

• Respiratory Distress Syndrome or respiratory failure

• Injuries during the birth process or shortly after

• Trauma

• Seizures