NORCET-8 Prelims: Kangaroo Mother Care (KMC) is provided to a low-birth-weight infant until the baby reaches which approximate…

NORCET-8 Prelims

Child Health Nursing (Pediatrics)

Easy

Appeared in: NORCET-8 Prelims

Explanation

Kangaroo Mother Care (KMC) is a standard intervention for stable low-birth-weight (LBW) infants.
The internationally recognized threshold for LBW is a weight below 2500 grams.
KMC is typically continued until the infant is no longer considered LBW, which corresponds to reaching a weight of approximately 2500 grams.
Other criteria for stopping KMC include the infant's ability to maintain their own body temperature and showing behavioral signs of readiness.

Option A: While infants weighing 2000 gm are eligible for and benefit greatly from KMC, this is not the target weight for discontinuation. Stopping at 2000 gm would be premature as the infant is still classified as LBW and vulnerable.
Option C: An infant weighing 1500 gm is classified as Very Low Birth Weight (VLBW). These infants are at very high risk for complications like hypothermia and infection and are in critical need of KMC, not ready to be weaned from it.
Option D: A weight of 3000 gm is well within the normal range for a healthy term infant. Continuing KMC until this weight is unnecessary as the infant would have long passed the LBW stage and should be able to self-regulate temperature.

Clinical Relevance

Nursing practice connection: Use the key finding related to Kangaroo Mother Care (KMC) for Low-Birth-Weight (LBW) Infants to guide bedside assessment, documentation, and the next nursing action.
Nurses play a crucial role in educating and supporting parents in practicing KMC correctly, monitoring the infant's stability (temperature, breathing, color), and identifying when the infant is ready to be weaned from KMC.
Accurate assessment of the infant's readiness to discontinue KMC is vital for patient safety. Stopping too early can lead to hypothermia and other complications, while continuing unnecessarily may cause parental fatigue.
What if? If a 2400 gm infant is consistently maintaining a stable temperature of 37°C in an open cot for 24 hours and seems fussy in the KMC position, the nurse should collaborate with the physician to consider discontinuing KMC, even if the baby is slightly under 2500 gm, as the infant is demonstrating physiological maturity.

How to Approach the Question

First, identify the core concept of the question: the duration of Kangaroo Mother Care (KMC) for low-birth-weight (LBW) infants.
Recall the definition of Low Birth Weight (LBW). The standard cutoff is a key piece of information in neonatal care.
Connect the purpose of KMC (to support LBW infants) with the definition of LBW. The intervention is logically continued until the infant is no longer in the at-risk category.
Evaluate the given weight options against the LBW threshold. The weight that signifies an infant is no longer LBW is the most logical endpoint for the therapy.
Eliminate options that represent weights where the infant is still highly vulnerable (1500 gm, 2000 gm) or a weight that is well into the normal range (3000 gm).

Concept Tested & Keywords

Concept Tested: Kangaroo Mother Care (KMC) for Low-Birth-Weight (LBW) Infants
Stem keywords: Kangaroo Mother Care, KMC, low-birth-weight infant, body weight
Lead-in keywords: until, approximate
Clinical cues: Age/sex group narrows the expected diagnosis, intervention, or normal reference range.
Negative lead-in flag: false

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E6 Ghai Essential Pediatrics(pp 26-904 of 913) p. 147-149

E6 Parks TextBook of Preventive & Social Medicine part 2 — Subpart A (pp 1-232 of 464) p. 33-35