In the new study, 200 healthy newborns spent 30 minutes in a hospital crib, 60 minutes in a car bed, and 60 minutes in a car seat. The infants had lower oxygen levels when in the car seats and car beds than when they were sleeping in hospital cribs. Specifically, the infants had an average oxygen saturation level of 95.7% in a car seat, compared with 96.3% in a car bed, and 97.9% in a hospital crib.
The researchers repeated the experiment for two-hour sleep intervals and got similar results. Dr. Kinane believes it would be a good idea to redesign infant car seats so that they do not cause chest compression. His idea? “New buckles and a new back to allow the head to fall back,” he suggests.
When it comes to car-seat safety, the recline angle of the seat is crucial, says Silva. As part of her job, Silva checks the angle of every car seat, as well as the heart rate and oxygenation levels of every newborn discharged from the neonatal intensive care unit at her hospital.
“We believe in it so much that it’s part of our procedure,” she says. “A doctor will specify whether the newborn passes or fails, and there is equipment such as car beds that can be utilized to address any issues if they should fail.”
Each car-seat manufacturer specifies the appropriate reclining angle for its seat, so if the product is installed correctly, it should help keep the child’s airway open, Silva says. In general, an infant car seat should sit at a 45-degree angle to prevent the baby from slumping and to keep his or her airway open, she explains. This is also the angle at which the seat has been crash-tested, according to Silva.
“Read the owner’s manual and only use these seats for travel,” she advises.
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Comments (6)
Thanks for an informative article.
I would only let my daughters when they were little sleep on the floor or in the crib. I never understood why people keep their kids in the car sit.
wow never new that. thats very important stuff to be aware about. thanks for posting
Recently observing the stress that a car seat places on my newborn granddaughter I am convinced that in the next few years they will be identified as a contributor to autistic spectrum disorders. Since the baby is not being comforted when in distress because the parent cannot stop the vehicle I believe the infant begins the process of dissociation leading to autistic like behaviour.
Many infants will *only* sleep in the car seat. Our baby has terrible acid reflux and cannot sleep, let alone recline awake for long, on any flat surface. Dr. Kinane wants to tout his research, but I notice the findings are full of “coulds” and “cans” and no actual data is reported. For many parents the car seat is the difference between a happy family and no one getting any sleep.
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