Abstract
BackgroundInfant massage is a natural way for caregivers to improve health, sleep patterns, and reduce colic. We aimed to investigate the effects of infant massage on neonates with jaundice who are also receiving phototherapy.MethodsFull-term neonates with jaundice, admitted for phototherapy at a regional teaching hospital, were randomly allocated to either a control group or a massage group. The medical information for each neonate, including total feeding amount, body weight, defecation frequency, and bilirubin level, was collected and compared between two groups.ResultsA total of 56 patients were enrolled in the study. This included 29 neonates in the control group and 27 in the experimental group. On the third day, the massage group showed significantly higher defecation frequency (p = 0.045) and significantly lower bilirubin levels (p = 0.03) compared with the control group. No significant differences related to feeding amount or body weight were observed between the two groups.ConclusionInfant massage could help to reduce bilirubin levels and increase defecation frequency in neonates receiving phototherapy for jaundice.
Highlights
Infant massage is a natural way for caregivers to improve health, sleep patterns, and reduce colic
Several studies have reported that infant massage can improve weight gain, sleep patterns, growth and development, and autonomic nervous system functions, and that it can reduce the rates of colic and infant mortality [1,2,3,4,5,6]
One neonate was excluded because his bilirubin level exceeded 22 mg/dL on the second day, and he was transferred to a medical center for further care
Summary
Infant massage is a natural way for caregivers to improve health, sleep patterns, and reduce colic. We aimed to investigate the effects of infant massage on neonates with jaundice who are receiving phototherapy. Several studies have reported that infant massage can improve weight gain, sleep patterns, growth and development, and autonomic nervous system functions, and that it can reduce the rates of colic and infant mortality [1,2,3,4,5,6]. Jaundice affects as many as 60 % of healthy neonates and is responsible for 75 % of hospitalizations within the first week after birth [10]. Most cases of neonatal jaundice are caused by unconjugated hyperbilirubinemia, which occurs because of excessive
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