How to treat umbilical cord?

[sofiam]

HI!

I my unit we use alcool 70º once a day, after the bath, but i´ve been reading some contradiction literature... Some says to dont apply anything, others to apply iodopovidone, clorhexidine, ...

Wthats your experience on this?

And when they have umbilical catethers with briges,do you apply anything?

[Elvish, BSN, DNP, RN, NP]

I wish we'd quit painting ours. We are using triple dye, because one of the pediatricians complained about how they weren't falling off quickly enough after d/c. I still tell parents what the EB recommendation is.

[darynash]

The skin care guidelines from AWHONN and NANN recommend that nothing be added to the umbilical cord. Their research has found that the cord actually falls off faster if nothing is applied to the cord. They also recommend tub baths from birth as tub baths are less noxious to the newborn than sponge bathing. The research has shown that it does not delay the cord falling off or an increase in infection of the cord.

What we have all done in the past is based on tradition and not research. Time to step into the present and practice evidence-based nursing.:wink2: