Very preterm babies — infants born two to four months early — require specialized care. Before they can safely go home, they need to spend time in the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) until their organs are more developed. In the NICU, these babies are exposed to mildly painful procedures, including heel pricks for blood collection, that are essential to closely monitor their health and screen for certain medical conditions. Research shows that exposure to daily pain is associated with poorer behavioural and cognitive outcomes later in life, so hospitals have pain management strategies in place. A common procedure is to give them oral sucrose, a sugar solution.
