I-Corps: Recording system for improving outcomes in preterm infants

University Of California-Los Angeles, Los Angeles CA

Investigators

Abstract

The broader impact/commercial potential of this I-Corps project is that the project influences how care is delivered and improves outcomes for premature infants in the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU). Because preterm babies are exposed to hospital surroundings that are very different from the environment of the womb, sound stimulation in the form of loud equipment and staff interactions creates an environment that can potentially negatively affect human development. Premature infants spend weeks or even months in the NICU and are thus exposed to these potentially nonideal environments for long periods of time. The technology developed with this project can potentially provide a cost-effective and simple method to improve outcomes and development of premature infants in NICU. Leveraging a digital technique developed as part of this team's research, this I-Corps project explores the commercial potential of neonatology research applying recorded, individualized, intra-abdominal sounds from pregnant mothers. The sounds are applied to infants in a NICU in order to improve their physical and intellectual development outcomes. The work builds off research showing that these low cost techniques can improve vital sign instability and stress levels in premature infants. The I-Corps technology pursued with this project involves a wearable device that can capture high fidelity recordings around the womb. These recordings include biological sounds such as the heart, lungs and intestines at a low pitch not captured in currently available commercial products. When played back to infants in a specialized manner, these recordings have the potential to positively influence human growth and development in premature infants.