title: Neonatal palliative care.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  A significant number of newborns are affected by life-limiting or life-threatening conditions. When prolongation of survival is no longer a goal, or prognosis is uncertain, a plan of care focused on the infant's comfort is essential. The aim of this article is to review the most recent and relevant literature regarding neonatal palliative care (NPC).
  
  
  RESULTS
  A variety of perinatal and NPC programs are described, but most programs focus exclusively on end-of-life care. Moreover, there is a great need to standardize practices and obtain follow-up quality measures.Guidelines to address infants' basic needs, to achieve a state of comfort, are proposed. A multidisciplinary team addressing the infants' medical and nonmedical needs, parental grieving process, and providers' distress is recommended.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  NPC is a unique multidisciplinary approach for the care of newborns affected by life-limiting or complex medical conditions with uncertain prognosis. Standardized guidelines should be implemented with the goal of achieving a state of comfort for newborns throughout the course of illness. Further studies are warranted to assess whether NPC effectively promotes newborns' comfort and parents and providers' satisfaction.
authors.affiliation: Department of Pediatrics, College of Physicians and Surgeons, Columbia University, New York City, New York, USA.
authors.forename: Elvira
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Parravicini
mesh_terms: D000013:Congenital Abnormalities / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000401:mortality / Q000628:therapy*; D005260:Female; D017052:Hospital Mortality / Q000639:trends*; D006801:Humans; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D007234:Infant, Premature; D007235:Infant, Premature, Diseases / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000401:mortality / Q000628:therapy; D015931:Intensive Care, Neonatal / Q000458:organization & administration*; D007902:Length of Stay; D008297:Male; D010166:Palliative Care / Q000458:organization & administration*; D010348:Patient Care Team / Q000458:organization & administration; D015397:Program Evaluation; D013727:Terminal Care / Q000458:organization & administration*; D016896:Treatment Outcome; D014481:United States