Skin care for high-risk neonates.

Skin care for the high-risk neonate requires both knowledge of the unique aspects of the physiology of the integument of the neonate and awareness of potential complications. Practices that are useful in the prevention and treatment of skin complications among adults may be harmful when applied to neonates or young children. Although the focus of this article is on the neonate, iatrogenic complications have been reported in older children as well. Because a definitive age at which percutaneous absorption is no longer a risk is not known, it is best to err on the side of conservatism and apply these principles of neonatal skin care to the pediatric population at large.