Effects of Breast Milk and Vanilla Odors on Premature Neonate's Heart Rate and Blood Oxygen Saturation During and After Venipuncture.

BACKGROUND: Different studies have shown that the use of olfactory stimuli during painful medical procedures reduces infants' response to pain. The main purpose of the current study was to investigate the effect of breast milk odor and vanilla odor on premature infants' vital signs including heart rate and blood oxygen saturation during and after venipuncture. METHODS: A total of 135 preterm infants were randomly selected and divided into three groups of control, vanilla odor, and breast milk odor. Infants in the breast milk group and the vanilla group were exposed to breast milk odor and vanilla odor from 5 minutes prior to sampling until 30 seconds after sampling. RESULTS: The results showed that breast milk odor has a significant effect on the changes of neonatal heart rate and blood oxygen saturation during and after venipuncture and decreased the variability of premature infants' heart rate and blood oxygen saturation. Vanilla odor has no significant effect on premature infants' heart rate and blood oxygen saturation. CONCLUSION: Breast milk odor can decrease the variability of premature infants' heart rate and blood oxygen saturation during and after venipuncture.

Comparison of Breastmilk Odor and Vanilla Odor on Mitigating Premature Infants' Response to Pain During and After Venipuncture.

OBJECTIVE: The main purpose of this study was to investigate the calming effects of breastmilk odor and vanilla odor on preterm infants during and after venipuncture. SUBJECTS AND METHODS: One hundred thirty-five preterm infants were randomly selected and divided into three groups: control, vanilla odor, and breastmilk odor. Infants in the breastmilk group were exposed to breastmilk odor, and infants in the vanilla group were exposed to vanilla odor from 5 minutes before the start of sampling until 30 seconds after sampling. The Premature Infant Pain Profile was used for calculating quality of pain in infants during and after sampling. RESULTS: Statistical analyses showed that both vanilla and breastmilk odors had calming effects on premature infants during sampling, but just breastmilk odor had calming effects on infants after the end of sampling. Compared with vanilla odor, breastmilk odor has more calming effects on premature infants. CONCLUSIONS: Breastmilk odor can be used for calming premature infants during and after venipuncture.