Acoustic Analysis of the First Babies Crying in Delivery Room and Adaptation to Extra Uterine Life (FIRSTCRY)

FirstCRY Study : Acoustic Analysis of the First Babies Crying in Delivery Room and Adaptation to Extra Uterine Life

Interpreting the cry of new-borns is a real challenge not only for perinatal professionals but also for parents, who are confronted daily with those sounds.

The description and the acoustic analysis of baby's cry can allow healthcare professionals to better adapt their care during the first months of life.

Thanks to an objective analysis method as acoustic analysis, the particularities of the first cry should provide us information on the quality of adaptation to ambient air life.

Study Overview

• Status: Completed
• Conditions: Premature Birth
• Intervention / Treatment: Behavioral: newborn cries

Detailed Description

Interpreting the cry of new-borns is a real challenge not only for perinatal professionals but also for parents, who are confronted daily with those sounds.

The description and the acoustic analysis of baby's cry can allow healthcare professionals to better adapt their care during the first months of life. Aiming for this objective, many studies have already been carried out on infants crying in the first months of life, in order to better understand their significance (pain, discomfort, hunger) and the mechanisms of recognition and discrimination by parents or listeners. Various techniques are promising to characterize the acoustic space of cry (maximum frequency, intensity, harmonics, duration…).

However, few studies have investigated the acoustic characteristics of the first cry of life in the delivery room. Its intensity and characteristics are closely related to the laryngeal anatomy and respiratory capacity. Thus, a vigorous cry with its own acoustic characteristics could be the witness of a good adaptation to extra uterine life, while a weak or plaintive cry should warn the caregiver on difficulties in this adaptation.

Thanks to an objective analysis method as acoustic analysis, the particularities of the first cry should provide us information on the quality of adaptation to ambient air life.

The investigators hypothesize that the acoustic characteristics of the first cries of newborns recorded at birth are correlated with the criteria of extra uterine life adaptation (Apgar score, pH and lactates collected from the umbilical cord), with the respiratory score (Silverman) and with the early neonatal outcome (transfer to the intensive care unit).

• Study Type: Observational
• Enrollment (Actual): 41

Contacts and Locations

Study Locations

• France
  • Saint-Étienne, France
    • CHU Saint-Etienne

Participation Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

• Ages Eligible for Study: 3 years to 3 years (Child)
• Accepts Healthy Volunteers: N/A
• Genders Eligible for Study: All

• Sampling Method: Non-Probability Sample

Study Population

Infant newborn

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

• Infant born between 37 and 42 SA
• Live infant at birth
• Parent who received informed written information about the study

Exclusion Criteria:

- Emergency after childbirth (haemorrhage)

Study Plan

How is the study designed?

Design Details

• Observational Models: Cohort
• Time Perspectives: Prospective

Number of groups / cohorts

1

Cohorts and Interventions

Group / Cohort

Intervention / Treatment

New born; New born population aged 37 Weeks of Amenorrhea (SA) to 42 Weeks of Amenorrhea (SA) will be included. Their cries will be longitudinally registered.

Behavioral: newborn cries; Their cries will be longitudinally registered from the age of birth until the first 15 minutes of birth using an automatic record device: Recorder ZOOM H4N. The wav-sized files obtained from each recording will then be analyzed indiscriminately via an acoustic processing script created for the PRAAT software® by the post-doctoral fellows of the ENES laboratory (Sensory NeuroEthology Team) on the site of the Faculty of Sciences of Saint-Etienne.

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
Fo : maximum fundamental frequency (Hz) of the cry	Measured by device: Recorder ZOOM H4N and analyzed with PRAAT® software The F0 and Apgar score will be correlated	During the first 15 minutes of life
Apgar score (0-10)	The Apgar score is determined by evaluating the newborn baby on five simple criteria on a scale from zero to two, then summing up the five values thus obtained. The resulting score ranges from zero to 10. The five criteria are : appearance, pulse, grimace, activity, respiration. The F0 and Apgar score will be correlated	During the first 15 minutes of life

Secondary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
Pitch of the cry (Hz) Crying acoustic structures	Measured by device: Recorder ZOOM H4N and analyzed with PRAAT® software	During the first 15 minutes of life
roughness of the cry (Hz)	Measured by device: Recorder ZOOM H4N and analyzed with PRAAT® software	During the first 15 minutes of life
Duration of cry (s)	Measured by device: Recorder ZOOM H4N and analyzed with PRAAT® software	During the first 15 minutes of life
Number of cry	Measured by device: Recorder ZOOM H4N and analyzed with PRAAT® software	During the first 15 minutes of life

Collaborators and Investigators

• Sponsor: Centre Hospitalier Universitaire de Saint Etienne
• Investigators: Principal Investigator: HUGUES PATURAL, MD PHD, CHU ST ETIENNE FRANCE

Study record dates

Study Major Dates

• Study Start (Actual): April 1, 2021
• Primary Completion (Actual): May 2, 2021
• Study Completion (Actual): May 2, 2021

Study Registration Dates

• First Submitted: April 13, 2021
• First Submitted That Met QC Criteria: April 13, 2021
• First Posted (Actual): April 19, 2021

Study Record Updates

• Last Update Posted (Estimate): December 26, 2022
• Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria: December 23, 2022
• Last Verified: December 1, 2022

More Information

Terms related to this study

• Keywords: Apgar score; Crying; Infant Behavior; delivery room; First cry; extra uterine life
• Additional Relevant MeSH Terms: Pregnancy Complications; Obstetric Labor Complications; Obstetric Labor, Premature; Premature Birth
• Other Study ID Numbers: IRBN262021/CHUSTE

Plan for Individual participant data (IPD)

• Plan to Share Individual Participant Data (IPD)?: No

Drug and device information, study documents

• Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product: No
• Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product: No