Researchers at the Harvard’s Wyss Institute have just published the results of a clinical study in which their vibrating mattress device successfully reduced infant apnea by 50%. This device was based on previous work done by a Wyss Institute Core Faculty member James Collins, Ph.D. His work showed that with a modest amount of random vibrations, or “noise”, applied to a human body, sensitivity of that body to stimuli will increase. The researchers then took this phenomenon and applied it by designing a mattress device that delivers a small amount of vibration to preterm infants. What they found in a pilot study was that it helped stabilize the kids’ breathing as well as improved blood oxygenation without waking the infant.
