Comparative Effect of Massage Therapy versus Kangaroo Mother Care on Physiological Responses, Chest Expansion and Body Weight in Low Birthweight Preterm Infants
Massage therapy (MT) and Kangaroo Mother Care (KMC) are both effective in increasing the weight of low birthweight preterm infants. However no comparisons have been made until now between the two.
Purpose: The aim of this study was to compare the effectiveness of MT and KMC on body weight, physiological responses and chest expansion of low birthweight preterm (LBWPT) infants.
Method: Using convenience sampling, 20 LBWPT infants from the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit of VS Hospital were randomly divided into 2 groups of 10 each. Group 1 received MT and Group 2 received KMC for 15 minutes, thrice daily for 5 days. Medically stable babies with gestational age <37 weeks and birth weight <2500g were included. Those on ventilators and with congenital, orthopaedic or genetic abnormality were excluded. Outcome measures including body weight, physiological responses (heart rate, respiratory rate and body temperature) and chest expansion were taken pre-intervention on day 1 and post-intervention on day 5. Level of significance was kept at 5%.
Results: Data were analysed using SPSS version 16. Both MT and KMC were found to be effective in improving body weight (p=0.005, p=0.007), decreasing heart rate (p=0.005, p=0.004), respiratory rate (p=0.018, p=0.004) and body temperature (p=0.005, p=0.007), and improving chest expansion (p=0.026, p=0.014). However, while both were found to be equally effective for body weight (p=0.341), heart rate (p=0.22), respiratory rate (p=0.969) and chest expansion (p=0.331), MT was found to be better than KMC in decreasing body temperature (p=0.003).
Conclusion: MT and KMC were both found to be equally effective, though MT appeared better at decreasing body temperature.
Limitations: Factors that may affect the physiological responses and body weight were not monitored.
Implications: Massage Therapy and Kangaroo Mother Care can be used in the community for weight gain, improvement of chest expansion and regularisation of physiological responses among preterm infants.Keywords
Authors
How to Cite
Download Citation
License
Copyright © 2014 The Author(s)

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
Authors retain copyright and grant the journal right of first publication with the work simultaneously licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution License By-NC-ND 4.0 that allows others to share the work with an acknowledgement of the work's authorship and initial publication in this journal.
Authors are able to enter into separate, additional contractual arrangements for the non-exclusive distribution of the journal's published version of the work (e.g., post it to an institutional repository or publish it in a book), with an acknowledgement of its initial publication in this journal.
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 (See The Effect of Open Access ).
Similar Articles
- Pavithra Rajan, Virtual Volunteerism and its Impact on International Community Development , Disability, CBR & Inclusive Development: Vol. 24 No. 2 (2013): Summer
- Maria A Zuurmond, Ilias Mahmud, Sarah Polack, Jenny Evans, Understanding the Lives of Caregivers of Children with Cerebral Palsy in rural Bangladesh: Use of Mixed Methods , Disability, CBR & Inclusive Development: Vol. 26 No. 2 (2015): Summer 2015
- Hasheem Mannan, Malcolm MacLachlan, Eilish McAuliffe, The Human Resources Challenge to Community Based Rehabilitation: The Need for a Scientific, Systematic and Coordinated Global Response , Disability, CBR & Inclusive Development: Vol. 23 No. 4 (2012): Winter
- Sandra Van Dort, Linda Wilson, Julia Coyle, Exploring a Model of Effectual Learning for a Student Speech Pathology Placement at a Community-Based Rehabilitation (CBR) Centre in Malaysia , Disability, CBR & Inclusive Development: Vol. 25 No. 4 (2014): Winter 2014
- Roi Dennis Adela Cayetano, Jeananne Elkins, Community-Based Rehabilitation Services in Low and Middle-Income Countries in the Asia-Pacific Region: Successes and Challenges in the Implementation of the CBR Matrix , Disability, CBR & Inclusive Development: Vol. 27 No. 2 (2016): Summer 2016
- Pavithra Rajan, Investing in Community-based Physiotherapy , Disability, CBR & Inclusive Development: Vol. 25 No. 1 (2014): Spring 2014
- Kezang Sherab, Matthew J Schuelka, Perceptions of Youth with Disabilities in Bhutan on Family Support, Attitudes, and Encouragement towards Meaningful Community Engagement: Implications for Parental Self-Efficacy , Disability, CBR & Inclusive Development: Vol. 34 No. 2 (2023): Summer Issue
- Suzanne C Hopf, Sharynne McLeod, Sarah H McDonagh, Epenisa N Rakanace, Communication Disability in Fiji: Community Cultural Beliefs and Attitudes , Disability, CBR & Inclusive Development: Vol. 28 No. 1 (2017): Spring 2017
- Ilse Maria De Jong, Sophia Celine Eugenia Koolen, Léa Françoise Roberte Guignard, Role of Young Carers of Parents with a Disability in Sierra Leone and Cameroon: an Explorative Study , Disability, CBR & Inclusive Development: Vol. 33 No. 4 (2022): Winter
- Pavithra Rajan, The Application of Focus Group Discussions and Interviews in Community Physiotherapy , Disability, CBR & Inclusive Development: Vol. 25 No. 4 (2014): Winter 2014
You may also start an advanced similarity search for this article.
Most read articles by the same author(s)
- Megha Sandeep Sheth, Nehal Paresh Shah, Yash Ahuja, Zishan Belim Khan, Parth Parmar, Priyasingh Bhagirath Rangey, Spinal Postures of Children seated on the floor in Schools in Ahmedabad District, India , Disability, CBR & Inclusive Development: Vol. 31 No. 1 (2020): Spring 2020
- Srishti Sanat Sharma, Megha Sandeep Sheth, Neeta Jayprakash Vyas, Fatigue and Functional Capacity in Persons with Post-Polio Syndrome: Short-term Effects of Exercise and Lifestyle Modification Compared to Lifestyle Modification Alone , Disability, CBR & Inclusive Development: Vol. 25 No. 3 (2014): Autumn 2014
- Megha Sandeep Sheth, Bhaskar Ghoghari, Neeta Jayprakash Vyas, Presentation and Impact of Pain in Persons with Post-Polio Syndrome: A Cross-sectional Survey Study , Disability, CBR & Inclusive Development: Vol. 24 No. 4 (2013): Winter 2013