From time to time, with new scientific evidence and changes in the protocols, many of the things that were done to babies as soon as they were born are no longer done, or they are struggling to stop doing, or They are well done later, to allow mother and son to remain united after childbirth and that the baby, calm and warm in his mother's chest, clings to the chest without interference, to achieve better breastfeeding and a better mother bond- son.
One of the actions that has always been done is to put ointment in the eyes of babies, to prevent neonatal conjunctivitis. Now, when putting the ointment in their eyes they stop seeing well and find it difficult to see their mother's nipple (which precisely changed color, to darker, to see it) and also adds a strange smell to them, the of the ointment, also harming the recognition of the smell of the mother and her breast. That is why it is worth asking: Is it necessary to put ointment in the eyes of newborns?
What is the ointment for?
The first thing, to answer the question, is to explain exactly what is the reason for putting ointment in the eyes of newborns. Many babies get to suffer conjunctivitis After birth. It is an infection almost always caused by bacteria, which can also be caused by viruses or chemical agents (silver nitrate that is sometimes used to prevent neonatal conjunctivitis can cause transient conjunctivitis).
The spread of the bacteria usually occurs in the birth canal, although sometimes it happens in the uterus or even after birth, due to contaminated secretions of health personnel or families.
A bacterial infection at that age, leading to conjunctivitis, if not treated properly, can lead to permanent eye injury or blindness.
Is it useful to apply preventive ointment?
Once we know that it is not interesting that a baby suffers from conjunctivitis, or that if he suffers it is left untreated, we must ask ourselves if using the ointment preventively serves to prevent neonatal conjunctivitis.
A meta-analysis (a review of many studies) conducted in 2010 included eight studies that analyzed this topic. Most of them had significant flaws in the methodology and the results could not be taken into account, so it remained as the only reliable study one in which the rates of chlamydia neonatal conjunctivitis were analyzed, treated in three different ways, with nitrate of silver, with erythromycin and with tetracycline, and they saw that there were no significant differences when compared to doing nothing.
After these data they concluded that It is necessary to review the recommendation to apply the ointment universally to all children, because it might not be necessary to do so.
However, a review of studies conducted in Canada, dating back to 92 and also talking about gonococcal infections, recommends the use of an ointment combined with silver nitrate, erythromycin and tetracycline because there is evidence that its use significantly reduces the incidence of this type of conjunctivitis and blindness.
For this reason, from the Ministry of Health they also support this measure, since in their "Clinical Practice Guide on Normal Birth Care" they say the following:
The performance of ophthalmic prophylaxis in routine care for RN is recommended.
And you have to do it right after birth?
Ok, considering that some recommend revising the protocols, because it could be being done without being necessary and others say that it is better to do it, and since the biggest problem is that the child stops seeing well (the nipple, around him, his mother !) and that your nose is disturbed, Couldn't it be done later, after I saw mom's face and after I suckled?
As you well know, but for the documentaries, for the stories, many animals come prepared to keep their mother's face as soon as they are born. Come on, that they create what is called an imprint with the image of the first person they see, and it is they they consider their mother.
In the case of babies, the thing does not work exactly like that, basically because they cannot walk to follow the midwife or the gin all over the floor, if they were the first people to see, but something is said to happen similar and it is commented that one of the reasons to promote the "skin with skin" is that of promote the baby not stop recognizing mom, passing from the smell and taste of the amniotic fluid to the smell and taste of your skin, which is the same, adding to it the aforementioned imprint: "I know how you know, I know how you smell and now I know how you are."
Well, the Ministry of Health, in the commented guide, states that there is evidence that gonorrhea infections have an incubation of up to 9 days and that those produced by chlamydia is between 3 and 4 days. Apparently, this evidence makes it possible to delay ophthalmic prophylaxis a bit, and instead of doing it at the time of birth, It can be done up to four hours after delivery.
Now we just need the protocols to change so that the ointment is put on the babies later, after having been with Mom for a while and after having made his first shot at a time when, in addition, it coincides with what comes I dream and spend a few hours sleeping and resting from being born.
