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Cited by 661Infant Development and Preterm CareNeonatal Respiratory Health ResearchMaternal and Neonatal Healthcare

Kangaroo Mother Care and Neonatal Outcomes: A Meta-analysis

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Boundy, Ellen O., Dastjerdi, Roya, Spiegelman, Donna, Fawzi, Wafaie W., Missmer, Stacey A., Lieberman, Ellice, Kajeepeta, Sandhya, Wall, Stephen +1 more·2016·Pediatrics
DOI 10.1542/peds.2015-2238PMC PMC4702019
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Abstract

CONTEXT: Kangaroo mother care (KMC) is an intervention aimed at improving outcomes among preterm and low birth weight newborns. OBJECTIVE: Conduct a systematic review and meta-analysis estimating the association between KMC and neonatal outcomes. DATA SOURCES: PubMed, Embase, Web of Science, Scopus, African Index Medicus (AIM), Latin American and Caribbean Health Sciences Information System (LILACS), Index Medicus for the Eastern Mediterranean Region (IMEMR), Index Medicus for the South-East Asian Region (IMSEAR), and Western Pacific Region Index Medicus (WPRIM). STUDY SELECTION: We included randomized trials and observational studies through April 2014 examining the relationship between KMC and neonatal outcomes among infants of any birth weight or gestational age. Studies with <10 participants, lack of a comparison group without KMC, and those not reporting a quantitative association were excluded. DATA EXTRACTION: Two reviewers extracted data on study design, risk of bias, KMC intervention, neonatal outcomes, relative risk (RR) or mean difference measures. RESULTS: 1035 studies were screened; 124 met inclusion criteria. Among LBW newborns, KMC compared to conventional care was associated with 36% lower mortality(RR 0.64; 95% [CI] 0.46, 0.89). KMC decreased risk of neonatal sepsis (RR 0.53, 95% CI 0.34, 0.83), hypothermia (RR 0.22; 95% CI 0.12, 0.41), hypoglycemia (RR 0.12; 95% CI 0.05, 0.32), and hospital readmission (RR 0.42; 95% CI 0.23, 0.76) and increased exclusive breastfeeding (RR 1.50; 95% CI 1.26, 1.78). Newborns receiving KMC had lower mean respiratory rate and pain measures, and higher oxygen saturation, temperature, and head circumference growth. LIMITATIONS: Lack of data on KMC limited the ability to assess dose-response. CONCLUSIONS: Interventions to scale up KMC implementation are warranted.

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  • KC is a therapeutic skin-to-skin treatment in which a pediatric patient is held against a parent's chest in a manner that lowers mortality, stabilizes heart rate, temperature, and respiration rate, and decreases risks for infection.

    “These same data can also inform effective methods for neonatal care such as KC, a therapeutic skin-to-skin “treatment”, in which a pediatric patient is held against a parent’s chest in a manner that lowers mortality, stabilizes heart rate, temperature, and respiration rate, and decreases the risks for infection14,15.”

    From Skin-interfaced biosensors for advanced wireless physiological monitoring in neonatal and pediatric intensive-care units (2020) · cites this paper as [14]

    The Discussion reports lower mortality, less sepsis and hypothermia, and improved vital signs among newborns receiving kangaroo mother care; the Results also report a lower respiratory rate. But the Results find no significant effect on mean heart rate or overall infection risk. The claim therefore overstates those two outcomes and describes the population more broadly than the newborns studied. Page numbers were not provided in our copy. (LLM, conf=0.90)

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Research works printed but not linked: 11

  1. [6]World Health Organization Department of Reproductive Health and Research Kangaroo Mother Care: A Practical Guide. Geneva, Switzerland: World Health Organization; 2003 [Google Scholar]
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Authors
Boundy, E. O., Dastjerdi, R., Spiegelman, D., Fawzi, W. W., Missmer, S. A., Lieberman, E., Kajeepeta, S., Wall, S., & Chan, G. J.
Affiliations
  • Departments of Epidemiology,
  • Departments of Global Health and Population, and
  • Harvard University (US)
  • Brigham and Women's Hospital (US)
  • Save the Children (US)
  • Boston Children's Hospital (US)
ORCID
Venue
Pediatrics
Publisher
American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP)
Published
2016-01-01
Volume
137
Issue
1
ISSN
  • 0031-4005 (ISSN-L)
  • 1098-4275
DOI
10.1542/peds.2015-2238
PMC
PMC4702019
OpenAlex
W2212414619
Cited by
661
References
158
Citations by year
2026: 54 · 2025: 75 · 2024: 67 · 2023: 71 · 2022: 81 · 2021: 84 · 2020: 69 · 2019: 55 · 2018: 47 · 2017: 35 · 2016: 21
FWCI
5.23
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
Locations
  • PEDIATRICS (publishedVersion)
  • PubMed Central (publishedVersion)
  • PubMed (publishedVersion)
  • Digital Access to Scholarship at Harvard (DASH) (Harvard University) (submittedVersion, cc-by)
Funders
  • U.S. Public Health Service (T76-MC-00001)
  • Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (T32HD060454)
Topics
  • Health Sciences › Medicine › Pediatrics, Perinatology and Child Health › Infant Development and Preterm Care
  • Health Sciences › Medicine › Pulmonary and Respiratory Medicine › Neonatal Respiratory Health Research
  • Health Sciences › Health Professions › General Health Professions › Maternal and Neonatal Healthcare
Keywords
kangaroo mother care, neonatal outcomes, preterm infants, low birth weight infants, neonatal mortality, neonatal sepsis, neonatal hypothermia, neonatal hypoglycemia, hospital readmission, exclusive breastfeeding, neonatal pain, oxygen saturation, head circumference growth
MeSH terms
Humans, Infant, Newborn, Randomized Controlled Trials as Topic, Kangaroo-Mother Care Method, Observational Studies as Topic

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