Oronasopharyngeal suction versus wiping of the mouth and nose at birth: a randomised equivalency trial.

Background: Wiping of the mouth and nose at birth is an alternative method to oronasopharyngeal suction in delivery-room management of neonates, but whether these methods have equivalent effectiveness is unclear.

Methods: For this randomised equivalency trial, neonates delivered at 35 weeks' gestation or later at the University of Alabama at Birmingham Hospital, Birmingham, AL, USA, between October, 2010, and November, 2011, were eligible. Before birth, neonates were randomly assigned gentle wiping of the face, mouth (implemented by the paediatric or obstetric resident), and nose with a towel (wipe group) or suction with a bulb syringe of the mouth and nostrils (suction group).