Pain reactivity and recovery in preterm neonates: latency, magnitude, and duration of behavioral responses.

Background: Studies on acute-procedural pain in neonates have been based more on single behavioral scores than on response patterns.

Aim: To assess the individual reactivity and recovery pattern to the painful procedure of blood collection.

Study Design: A cross-sectional, within-group comparison trial.

Pain and tactile stimuli during arterial puncture in preterm neonates.

The purpose of this study was to assess the behavioral and physiological reactivity of preterm neonates during different phases of a blood collection procedure involving arterial puncture. The sample consisted of 43 preterm and very low birth weight neonates with a postnatal age of 1 to 21 days who were hospitalized in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit. The neonates were evaluated during the whole blood collection procedure.