Baseline characteristics of the study population
| Characteristics | Control group (n=30) | Intervention group (n=15) |
| Infant characteristics | ||
| Mean gestational age (SD), weeks | 28.6 (4.1) | 29.3 (3.0) |
| Mean corrected gestational age at the time of intubation (SD), weeks | 30.0 (3.5) | 30 (3.3) |
| Mean birth weight (SD), g | 1272 (726) | 1316 (502) |
| Mean weight at the time of intubation (SD), g | 1344 (502) | 1520 (634) |
| Causes for intubation (%) | Respiratory failure: 25 (83) Apnoea of prematurity: 4 (13) Intraventricular haemorrhage with secondary apnoea: 1 (3) | Respiratory failure: 10 (67) Apnoea of prematurity: 3 (20) Necrotising enterocolitis: 1 (7) Sepsis: 1 (7) |
| Intubator characteristics | ||
| Median number of attempts (range) | 2 (2–5) | 2 (2–4) |
| First intubation (%) | 15 (50) | 7 (47) |
| Median number of previous successful intubations (range) | 3 (0–20) | 1 (1–6) |