title: Neonatal respiratory consequences from water birth.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Differentiating features were sought for respiratory distress after water birth versus air birth in term low-risk babies. Clinical and X-ray features were to be assessed to determine if the disease processes could be differentiated.
  
  
  METHODS
  Review of case records and X-rays over a 7-year period for all admitted babies with respiratory distress after water birth and a similar group of babies with respiratory distress after air birth.
  
  
  RESULTS
  There were 14 water birth babies and 24 air birth babies in the study. The water birth babies showed greater acidosis, greater requirement for ventilation, greater requirement for nitric oxide treatment and greater time to establish feeding. The X-rays could not be reliably allocated to the correct group, but the water birth X-rays were judged to have more severe changes than the air birth babies.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  In low-risk babies with respiratory distress, water birth is associated with a greater level of respiratory morbidity than seen after air birth.
authors.affiliation: Department of Neonatal Intensive Care Unit, Waikato Hospital, Hamilton, New Zealand.
authors.forename: Lee
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Carpenter
authors.forename: Phil
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Weston
mesh_terms: D036861:Delivery, Obstetric / Q000009:adverse effects* / Q000379:methods; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D009520:New Zealand; D011247:Pregnancy; D012127:Respiratory Distress Syndrome, Newborn / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000209:etiology* / Q000628:therapy; D012720:Severity of Illness Index; D016037:Single-Blind Method; D047929:Term Birth; D014867:Water / Q000009:adverse effects*
chemical_list: D014867:Water