This document defines low birth weight babies as those weighing less than 2500 grams at birth, regardless of gestational age. It describes the two main types of low birth weight as preterm birth (before 37 weeks gestation) and small for gestational age (below the 10th percentile for weight at a certain gestation). Approximately 50% of low birth weight cases are due to unknown causes, while the remaining 50% are due to medical issues like maternal health problems, placental abnormalities, or fetal infections, or social issues like poverty, illiteracy, and smoking during pregnancy. Low birth weight babies are at risk of problems like birth asphyxia, hypothermia, feeding difficulties, and infections. Their care depends on birth

2. LOW BIRTH
WEIGHT BABIES
Presented By:-
Aayushi Patel
4th Year Bsc Nursing
Guided By:-
Ms. Akruti Ramoliya
Assistant Professor

3. DEFINITION:-
“Any Neonate with a birth weight of
less than 2500 gm, irrespective of
the of gestational age is termed as
Low birth weight baby.”

5. Mainly two types based on the origin:-
• <37 completed weeks of gestation.
• 1/3 cases of lbw
Types of LBW

6. • <10th centile for gestational age.
• 2/3 cases of lbw
• condition in which baby doesn’t grow to
normal weight during pregnancy ( due to
placenta abnormalities, High BP in mother
or infection and smoking / alcohol abuse in
mother )
Types of LBW

7. CAUSES
In nearly 50% of cases of LBW the cause is not
known.
In remaining 50% the causes are grouped into
a) Medical
b) social

8. CAUSES
a) Medical causes
1. Maternal causes : all high risk mothers except
Diabetics.
2. Placental causes : Placenta previa , Congenital
defects of placenta etc.
3. Fetal causes : Multiple gestation, Hydramnios,
intrauterine infections etc.

9. CAUSES
b) Social causes
Poverty,
Illiteracy,
Ignorance,
Poor standard of living,
lack of knowledge on family
planning, early marriages,
smoking etc

10. LBW (Preterm) : Problems
➢ Birth asphyxia
➢ Hypothermia
➢ Feeding difficulties
➢ Infections
➢ Hyperbilirubinemia
➢ Respiratory distress
➢ Intraventricular hemorrhage
➢ Hypoglycemia

11. LBW (SFD) : Problems
➢ Hypothermia
➢ Hypoglycemia
➢ Infections
➢ Birth asphyxia
➢ Meconium aspiration syndrome

12. Care of LBW babies
Depends upon birth weight:-
1) 2500 – 2000 gm - Requires special care at
home
2) <2000 gm - Requires special care at hospital
3) <1500 gm & >1000 gm
- Requires kangaroo mother care and NICU care.

13. Management
1. •Prevention of prematurity
2. •Prevention of preterm labor
3. •Care of preterm neonate

14. Other Management
1) MONITORING –
vital signs
Activity and behavior-
Skin color- pink, pale, yellow,
2) Thermal comfort-
Incubator should be available
Extremely lbw babies Are covered with thin transparent plastic sheet for
prevention of evaporation from skin.
3) Oxygen therapy-
oxygen should ne administered with head box when saturation is less than
85%.

15. Assignment
1) Define lbw baby. (2 marks)
2) Enlist causes of lbw baby. (3 marks)
3) Describe the management of lbw baby amd Write
down the nursing management of
Hyperbilirubinemia. (5 marks)
Submitted on : 10 th September