Admission and procedures
Admission calculator
Enter a baby's weight, gestation or both to see umbilical line insertion lengths, catheter and endotracheal tube sizes, tube length at the lip, a checklist of things to plan, and the drugs commonly used in intubation, circulation, sedation, seizures, resuscitation and infection, each linked to the BNF for Children and the guideline. No doses.
For education. Check against your unit's guidance and a second clinician before use.
The baby
Enter the weight, the gestation, or both. With gestation only, the weight is estimated.
Birth weight, or current weight for a baby who is older.
weeks
days
For corrected and postmenstrual age.
days
Enter the weight, the gestation, or both.
Before you use this
- No doses: NICUlearn never calculates or states drug doses or fluid volumes. Check doses in the BNF for Children (or your national formulary), your unit's guideline and with your pharmacist.
Oral endotracheal tube length at the lip by gestation (Kempley et al. 2008)
| Gestation (weeks) | Length at lip (cm) |
|---|---|
| 23 to 24 | 5.5 |
| 25 to 26 | 6 |
| 27 to 29 | 6.5 |
| 30 to 32 | 7 |
| 33 to 34 | 7.5 |
| 35 to 37 | 8 |
| 38 to 40 | 8.5 |
| 41 to 43 | 9 |
How this is calculated
- Enter the weight, the gestation, or both. The Kempley tube length and the gestation category need a gestation.
- With gestation only (24+0 to 42+6 weeks), the weight is estimated as the INTERGROWTH-21st 50th centile birth weight for that day of gestation, for a boy, a girl, or the average of the two if sex is not known. Line lengths, catheter size and tube length by weight are then calculated from it and labelled as estimated. The checklist never uses an estimated weight.
- UAC insertion length, high position (cm) = 3 × weight (kg) + 9 (Shukla and Ferrara). For babies under 1.5 kg the Wright formula, 4 × weight (kg) + 7, is also shown: it places lines in very low birth weight babies more accurately.
- UVC insertion length (cm) = (UAC length ÷ 2) + 1 (Shukla and Ferrara).
- Catheter size: 3.5 Fr under 1.5 kg and 5 Fr from 1.5 kg, as commonly used; units vary.
- Endotracheal tube size by weight: under 1 kg 2.5 mm; 1 to 2 kg 3.0 mm; 2 to 3 kg 3.5 mm; over 3 kg 3.5 to 4.0 mm. Without a weight, by gestation: under 28 weeks 2.5 mm; 28 to 33 weeks 3.0 mm; 34 to 37 weeks 3.5 mm; 38 weeks or more 3.5 to 4.0 mm.
- Oral tube length at the lip by gestation from the Kempley table; by weight, weight (kg) + 6 cm (Tochen).
- Drug sections list the drugs commonly used, what each is for and what to watch, with links to the BNF for Children and the guideline. NICUlearn never calculates or states a dose.
- The checklist shows items for the gestation and weight entered. If one is missing, items that depend on it are shown with their condition first (for example "If born before 32 weeks: …").
Sources
- Shukla H, Ferrara A. Rapid estimation of insertional length of umbilical catheters in newborns. Am J Dis Child 1986;140:786-8.
- Wright IM, Owers M, Wagner M. The umbilical arterial catheter: a formula for improved positioning in the very low birth weight infant. Pediatr Crit Care Med 2008;9:498-501.
- Kempley ST, Moreiras JW, Petrone FL. Endotracheal tube length for neonatal intubation. Resuscitation 2008;77:369-73.
- Tochen ML. Orotracheal intubation in the newborn infant: a method for determining depth of tube insertion. J Pediatr 1979;95:1050-1.
- Resuscitation Council UK. Newborn resuscitation and support of transition of infants at birth (2025).
- RCPCH. UK screening of retinopathy of prematurity: clinical guideline.
- Villar J, et al. International standards for newborn weight, length, and head circumference by gestational age and sex: the Newborn Cross-Sectional Study of the INTERGROWTH-21st Project. Lancet 2014;384:857-68. Used with permission of the INTERGROWTH-21st team.
- Villar J, et al. INTERGROWTH-21st very preterm size at birth reference charts. Lancet 2016;387:844-5. Used with permission of the INTERGROWTH-21st team.
Checked by NICUlearn, 6 Oct 2026.