Effectiveness of Kangaroo Mother Care in enhancing survival and health outcomes among preterm neonates in a resource-limited tertiary care setting
Article Sidebar
Main Article Content
Abstract
Objective: To evaluate the efficacy of Kangaroo Mother Care (KMC) in improving survival rates, weight gain, and reducing hospital stay duration among preterm neonates in a tertiary care hospital in Pakistan.
Methods: A two-year retrospective study was conducted at Hayatabad Medical Complex Peshawar, Pakistan from August 2021 to July 2023. A total of 213 preterm neonates with birth weights between 1.5 to 2.5 kg were included. Out of these, 168 neonates received KMC, while 10 were transferred to a nursery, and 35 were discharged without KMC due to parental refusal. Data on neonatal demographics, maternal factors, duration of hospital stay, and weight gain were collected and analyzed using descriptive and comparative statistical tests.
Results: Mean daily weight gain was 16.6±4.2 g, and 87.5% maintained a stable body temperature. Most KMC neonates (57.14%) were discharged within 4–6 days, with no in-hospital mortality. Follow-up showed survival rates of 98.68% at one month and 99.19% at three months among reachable neonates. Two neonates died within one month, one from pneumonia and the other from sepsis, while another neonate died later due to sudden unexpected infant death syndrome. Hypothermia (12.5%) and minor illnesses (2.4%) were rare, with no cases of apnea reported. Exclusive breastfeeding and satisfactory weight gain were achieved in all KMC neonates.
Conclusion: KMC is an effective intervention for improving survival, weight gain, and reducing morbidity in preterm neonates. It offers a low-cost, resource-efficient alternative to conventional neonatal care and should be widely implemented in resource-limited settings to reduce neonatal mortality.
Article Details
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
Work published in KMUJ is licensed under a
Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License
Authors are permitted and encouraged to post their work online
(e.g., in institutional repositories or on their website) prior to and during the submission process, as it can lead to productive exchanges, as well as earlier and greater citation of published work.
References
1. World Health Organization. Survive and thrive: transforming care for every small and sick newborn: key findings. World Health Organization; 2018.
2. Mohammadi M, Bergh AM, Heidarzadeh M, Hosseini M, Sattarzadeh Jahdi N, Valizadeh L, et al. Implementation and effectiveness of continuous Kangaroo Mother Care: A participatory action research protocol. Int Breastfeed J 2021;16(1):8. https://doi.org/10.1186/s13006-021-00367-3
3. Rasul N, Rashid M, Abbas A, Sohail R. First experience of implementation of Kangaroo Mother Care in Punjab, Pakistan to reduce morbidity and mortality in preterm infants. Ann King Edw Med Univ 2017;23:496-502.
4. Cristóbal Cañadas D, Bonillo Perales A, Galera Martínez R, Casado-Belmonte M del P, Parrón Carreño T. Effects of Kangaroo Mother Care in the NICU on the physiological stress parameters of premature infants: A meta-analysis of RCTs. Int J Environ Res Public Health 2022;19(1):583. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph19010583
5. Akbari E, Binnoon-Erez N, Rodrigues M, Ricci A, Schneider J, Madigan S, et al. Kangaroo Mother Care and infant biopsychosocial outcomes in the first year: A meta-analysis. Early Hum Dev 2018;122:22-31. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.earlhumdev.2018.05.004
6. Kumar RK, Singhal A, Vaidya U, Banerjee S, Anwar F, Rao S. Optimizing nutrition in preterm low birth weight infants-consensus summary. Front Nutr 2017;4:20. https://doi.org/10.3389/fnut.2017.00020
7. Sinha B, Sommerfelt H, Ashorn P, Mazumder S, Taneja S, More D, et al. Effect of community-initiated Kangaroo Mother Care on postpartum depressive symptoms and stress among mothers of low-birth-weight infants. JAMA Netw Open 2021;4(4). https://doi.org/10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2021.6040
8. Nyqvist K, Anderson G, Bergman N, Cattaneo A, Charpak N, Davanzo R, et al. Towards universal Kangaroo Mother Care: Recommendations and report from the First European conference and Seventh International Workshop on Kangaroo Mother Care. Acta Paediatr 2010;99(6):820-826. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1651-2227.2010.01787.x
9. Shaikh T, Haque Sangi R, Raza MS, Shaikh NUA, Jamro S, Ahsan AK, et al. Efficacy of Kangaroo Mother Care among low-birth-weight newborns at a tertiary care hospital: A cross-sectional study. J Pharm Res Int 2022;34(41B):1-6. https://doi.org/10.9734/jpri/2022/v34i41B36274
10. Mazumder S, Upadhyay RP, Hill Z, Taneja S, Dube B, Kaur J, et al. Kangaroo Mother Care: Using formative research to design an acceptable community intervention. BMC Public Health 2018;18(1):1-10. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12889-018-5222-0
11. Mishra P, Rai N, Mishra NR, Ranjan Das R. Effect of Kangaroo Mother Care on breastfeeding, morbidity, and mortality of very low birth weight neonates: A prospective observational study. Indian J Child Health 2017;4(3):379-82. https://10.32677/IJCH.2017.v04.i03.025
12. Evereklian M, Posmontier B. The impact of Kangaroo Care on premature infant weight gain. J Pediatr Nurs 2017;34. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.pedn.2017.02.006
13. Gupta M, Jora R, Bhatia R. Kangaroo Mother Care (KMC) in LBW infants—a Western Rajasthan experience. Indian J Pediatr 2007;74(8):747-9. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12098-007-0131-x
14. Montealegre-Pomar A, Bohorquez A, Charpak N. Systematic review and meta-analysis suggest that Kangaroo position protects against apnoea of prematurity. Acta Paediatr 2020;109(7):1310-6. https://doi.org/10.1111/apa.15161
15. Parmar VR, Kumar A, Kaur R, Parmar S, Kaur D, Basu S, et al. Experience with Kangaroo Mother Care in a neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) in Chandigarh, India. Indian J Pediatr 2009;76(1):25-8. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12098-009-0024-2
16. Gathwala G, Singh B, Singh J. Effect of Kangaroo Mother Care on physical growth, breastfeeding, and its acceptability. Trop Doct 2010;40(4):199-202. https://doi.org/10.1258/td.2010. 090513
17. Rehman MOU, Hayat S, Gul R, Waheed KAI, Victor G, Khan MQ, et al. Impact of intermittent Kangaroo Mother Care on weight gain of neonates in NICU: Randomized control trial. J Pak Med Assoc 2020;70(6):973-7. https://doi.org/10.5455/JPMA.45123
18. Rangey PS, Sheth M. Comparative effect of massage therapy versus Kangaroo Mother Care on body weight and length of hospital stay in low birth weight preterm infants. Int J Pediatr 2014;2014(1):1-4. https://doi.org/10.1155/2014/434060