Acoustic Analysis of the First Babies Crying in Delivery Room and Adaptation to Extra Uterine Life

Premature Birth

Crying, Apgar score, Infant Behavior, First cry, delivery room, extra uterine life

Interpreting the cry of new-borns is a real challenge not only for perinatal professionals but also for parents, who are confronted daily with those sounds. The description and the acoustic analysis of baby's cry can allow healthcare professionals to better adapt their care during the first months of life. Thanks to an objective analysis method as acoustic analysis, the particularities of the first cry should provide us information on the quality of adaptation to ambient air life.

Interpreting the cry of new-borns is a real challenge not only for perinatal professionals but also for parents, who are confronted daily with those sounds. The description and the acoustic analysis of baby's cry can allow healthcare professionals to better adapt their care during the first months of life. Aiming for this objective, many studies have already been carried out on infants crying in the first months of life, in order to better understand their significance (pain, discomfort, hunger) and the mechanisms of recognition and discrimination by parents or listeners. Various techniques are promising to characterize the acoustic space of cry (maximum frequency, intensity, harmonics, duration…). However, few studies have investigated the acoustic characteristics of the first cry of life in the delivery room. Its intensity and characteristics are closely related to the laryngeal anatomy and respiratory capacity. Thus, a vigorous cry with its own acoustic characteristics could be the witness of a good adaptation to extra uterine life, while a weak or plaintive cry should warn the caregiver on difficulties in this adaptation. Thanks to an objective analysis method as acoustic analysis, the particularities of the first cry should provide us information on the quality of adaptation to ambient air life. The investigators hypothesize that the acoustic characteristics of the first cries of newborns recorded at birth are correlated with the criteria of extra uterine life adaptation (Apgar score, pH and lactates collected from the umbilical cord), with the respiratory score (Silverman) and with the early neonatal outcome (transfer to the intensive care unit).

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