The Hidden Angel Foundation is proud to support and contribute to the research and work being done around the use of Multi Sensory Stimulation for premature infants within the Neonatal Research Laboratory at Brigham and Women’s Hospital. The Neonatal Research Lab at Brigham and Women’s Hospital offers preterm infants the maternal auditory and tactile vibroacoustic stimulation needed to develop properly. The ultimate goal of this research project is to improve developmental outcomes in extremely premature infants through the unique application of multisensory stimulation while in the hospital bed. A total of 25 preterm infants will participate in this study over a 2 year period. BWH will specifically target infants born very prematurely between 25 – 32 weeks gestation as this patient population has the highest risk for developmental problems.
Thanks to the Hidden Angel Foundation, the infants will be exposed to audio recording of their own mother’s voice, heartbeat, and music transmitted to the infant’s incubator via vibroacoustic technology. Vibroacoustic platforms have been developed by HAF to help stimulate individuals with neurological challenges. BWH hypothesizes that this bedside technology will provide infants with a more womb-like environment to grow, providing them with both the audio and vibrational stimulation they need in order to develop normally. This research will collect critically important data that will shed more light about the importance of multisensory stimulation in extremely premature infants and may increase their potential for normal development.
