Kangaroo Mother Care – An Inspiration from Nature

Abstract

Aim: To study the effect of Kangaroo mother care (KMC) in comparison with conventional care(CMC) at neonatal unit on feasibility, growth and hospital stay in very low birth weight infants. Methods: This was a pilot study conducted at a tertiary care neonatal unit. Low birth weight babies (weighing< 2000 grams) were given kangaroo mother care (KMC) for minimum of four hours. Feasibility of Kangaroo mother care,rate of weight gain ,and duration of hospital stay were assessed.Results: .Total of 96 babies were there for the study, 41 in the KMC group and 55 in the conventional method of care (CMC). No parents opted out after starting KMC . 80.5% parents were able to give KMC for more than four hours. Weight of 63.4% babies were on or above the line in KMC group at discharge in contrast to 40% babies in CMC. Mean length of hospital stay was 6.75 days in case of KMC group in contrast to 11.14 in CMC group.p value 0.09. CONCLUSION : Kangaroo mother care (KMC) in the care of preterm babies is feasible in any setting after proper counselling of staff and parents.KMC is beneficial to the baby and the family as it improves weight gain and reduces length of hospital stay.