PreTouch – Effects of gentle touch in preterm babies

The EU-funded project “PreTouch - Tactile sensory impairment of C-tactile afferents in preterm children and interventional approaches” investigates the effects of gentle touch in preterm babies. Together with our project partners in Hungary, France, and Norway, we want to find out at what time so-called C-tactile nerve fibers mature in the human body. C-tactile nerve fibers form a special nervous system by which we perceive gentle touch like stroking. They are found almost everywhere in our skin. Various studies have shown that stroking not only feels good, but also effects the body. With C-tactile optimal stroking (1-10 cm/s), the autonomic nervous system calms down: breathing slows down, the pulse rate lowers, and oxygen saturation in the blood increases. This effect is especially important for preterm baby care. Preterm babies often have trouble regulating their autonomic nervous system. Heart rate dysregulations can lead to complications and life-threatening conditions. In term-born babies, a C-tactile typical calming effect of stroking has already been observed. But we do not know: At what point does the C-tactile system mature in preterm babies? How exactly should a C-tactile optimal stimulation in preterm baby care look like?

Contact: Ilona Croy & Yvonne Friedrich & Isabella Püschel

Further information: https://www.uni-jena.de/210702_Streicheln de