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Recognize the Difference between NICU and PICU

In addition to adults, there are also special care facilities for infants and children in the hospital. Two of the facilities are NICU (Neonatal Intensive Care Unit) and PICU (Pediatric Intensive Care Unit). What is the difference between NICU and PICU? Both types of health facilities are for infants and children with critical conditions that require intensive care. To find out more about the differences between the NICU and PICU and their functions, see the following explanation.

Difference between NICU and PICU

Although at first glance it looks similar, NICU and PICU actually have the following differences:

NICU

NICU is an intensive care unit that is specifically provided for newborns with critical conditions or have severe health problems. The age range of patients treated in the NICU room is newborns to babies aged 28 days. Some conditions that make babies need treatment at the NICU are babies born prematurely, have severe congenital defects, experience respiratory failure, develop severe infections (sepsis), suffer from dehydration, or experience heavy bleeding. The NICU room is equipped with a variety of medical equipment to handle critical conditions, including:

  • Breathing apparatus

    • In the NICU room there are various breathing apparatus, such as oxygen cylinders, hoses or oxygen masks, and ventilator machines. This equipment is used to help babies who have difficulty breathing or cannot breathe at all. In treating babies with severe respiratory disorders, doctors often need to do intubation to install a breathing tube which will then be connected to a ventilator machine, to help the baby breathe.

  • Infant warmers

    • Newborns, especially premature babies, have less fat tissue, so there is a risk of experiencing cold or hypothermia. Therefore, a baby warmer is needed to keep the body temperature warm.

  • Incubator

    • An incubator is a tool in the form of a special box for babies with thick and transparent plastic walls that have temperature control to prevent the baby from getting cold. This tool also serves to protect babies from infection.

  • Monitor vital signs

    • In the NICU room there is a monitor to monitor the baby's vital signs, which include oxygen levels in the blood, respiratory rate, heart rate, body temperature, and baby's blood pressure. The NICU room is also equipped with a variety of other tools needed to support baby's health, such as tools for phototherapy and food tubes that will be attached to the baby's nose or mouth for breastfeeding or formula milk.

PICU (Pediatric Intensive Care Unit)

Unlike the NICU which is specifically intended for newborns up to the age of 28 days, PICU is specifically for babies over 1 month of age and children aged 1 to 18 years with critical conditions. Severe and potentially fatal conditions in older infants and children who need treatment at PICU include severe asthma, severe dehydration, bleeding due to serious injury or accident, sepsis, organ failure, poisoning, and meningitis. Infants and children who have recently undergone major operations also usually need to be treated for some time in the PICU room. Similar to the NICU, the PICU room is also equipped with various medical equipment to monitor and treat the condition of critical infants and children, ranging from incubators, phototherapy devices, ventilator machines, oxygen cylinders, to special heart shock devices for children.

Care in the NICU and PICU rooms

Besides being equipped with various medical equipment, the PICU and NICU rooms are also equipped with a variety of emergency medicines, such as dobutamine and epinephrine, which can be needed at any time if the patient's condition is increasingly critical. While being treated in this intensive room, infants and children with critical conditions will be closely monitored and evaluated by a medical team consisting of general practitioners, pediatricians, and nurses. In this intensive room, parents can accompany a sick child, but the number of other visitors and visiting time will be limited. The aim is to create a calm and comfortable atmosphere for the patient, and to prevent the patient from getting an infection. The principle of handling critical infant and child patients in this intensive care room is actually not much different. The difference between NICU and PICU lies in the patient's age group, which will certainly affect the type and size of the devices inside.

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