College of Nursing faculty uses neonatal research expertise to engage in informative seminars

Terri Marin, PhD is a Department of Nursing Science Associate Professor for Augusta University’s College of Nursing. Earlier this month, Marin participated in the Stony Brook School of Nursing sponsored Research Seminar Series where she discussed how routine diaper changes negatively affect kidney oxygenation in premature infants. Marin is an alumni of Stony Brook and began her presentation saying, “It’s always an honor to give back to those who gave so much to me.”

The virtual webinar was held on November 14th during National Nurse Practitioner Week. The webinar focused on Dr. Marin’s study which was funded by the Florida Association of Neonatal Nurse Practitioners. In this study, Marin examined whether routine diaper changes in preterm infants were associated with reductions in kidney oxygenation. This research is critical because premature babies are at an increased risk for acute kidney injury, and when it develops, mortality risk becomes four times higher. Those who do survive run twice the risk of developing chronic kidney disease in adolescence and adulthood. The study monitored regional oxygen saturations (rSO2), measured by near-infrared spectroscopy (NIRS), in infants before, during, and after diaper changes. Kidney oxygenation was found to significantly decrease during diaper changes, and Dr. Marin plans to prospectively analyze this phenomenon in future studies using NIRS and Doppler flow imaging.

Aside from earning her PhD in Nursing Research from Emory University, Marin is a certified Neonatal Nurse Practitioner. She has been named Fellow for the American Association of Nurse Practitioners, the American Academy of Nursing, and the National Academies of Practice for her significant contributions to neonatal research. In 2018 and 2019 respectively, she was honored for her Excellence in Research and Excellence in Mentoring from Sigma Theta Tau International. Marin demonstrates her expertise in research and scholarship with numerous publications in peer-reviewed journals, and is currently the neonatal editor for The Journal of Perinatal & Neonatal Nursing.