Two cases of infants who needed cardiopulmonary resuscitation during early skin-to-skin contact with mother.

Early skin-to-skin contact (SSC) results in significantly better overall performance on all measures of breastfeeding status and duration. SSC is widely believed to be free of adverse effects. We recently encountered two cases having life-threatening episodes during SSC. An experienced nurse should be placed in the delivery room for periodic observation and recording of vital signs of newborns who are in SSC (color, respirations, tone and heart rate) and to alert the physician to any cardiorespiratory changes. The point should also be emphasized to mothers that infants must be observed carefully and medical staff called immediately if the infant displays any vital changes during SSC.