Table 2 Study characteristics
First author, year | Study design | N | Sample Characteristics | Intervention type | Intervention description | Control group/Alternative Intervention | Outcome measures | Results |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Afand et al. 2017 [22] | RCT | 75 | Primiparous subjects, age 18–40 years, no mental illness, with infants 32–37 weeks gestational at birth | Massage only | Field Method: 8-min massage session including two similar standard 4-min parts; in the first 4-min by the researcher while the mother was observing and for the second four minutes, the mother performed the massages | Yes | STAI | The mean scores of maternal state anxiety (MSA) in mothers of the massage group were significantly lower than control group In before and after comparison, the mean score of MSA in two groups was significantly decreased |
Feijo et al. 2006 [23] | RCT | 20 | Mothers of infants < 37 weeks, medically stable, to be discharged within 24 h Racial/Ethnic Characteristics: Not reported | Massage only | Field Method: Massage was performed in an 8-min session including two similar standard 4-min parts | Control group observed their infant being massaged | STAI, POMS, Infant Massage Questionnaire | A significant Time by Group interaction effect was noted for STAI indicating that only the mothers who conducted the preterm infant massage reported decreased anxiety. A significant main effect of Time was noted for POMS indicating that both groups experienced a decrease in depressed mood |
Holditch-Davis et al. 2014 [24] | 3-arm RCT | 240 | Mothers of infants who weighed less than 1750 g at birth without history of bipolar disorder or major depressive disorder Racial/Ethnic Characteristics: Black = 68.3% White = 19.2% Hispanic = 8.3% Other = 4.2% | Massage as component | ATVV intervention: 10 min of auditory, tactile (moderate touch stroking or massage) and visual stimulation, followed by 5 min of vestibular stimulation | Kangaroo Care group and control group | CESD, STAI, PPQerinatal PTSD, PSS:PBC, The Worry Index, The Vulnerable Child Scale, The HOME Inventory | Mothers who massaged had a more rapid decline in depressive symptoms that leveled out earlier than mothers not in engaging in any intervention; Parenting stress was lower for mothers who engaged in any intervention than those who did not. Mothers who performed massage had higher HOME scores than mothers who engaged in neither |
Holditch-Davis et al. 2013 [25] | 3-arm RCT | 240 | Mothers of infants who weighed less than 1750 g at birth without history of bipolar disorder or major depressive disorder Racial/Ethnic Characteristics: Black = 68.3% White = 19.2% Hispanic = 8.3% Other = 4.2% | Massage as component | ATVV intervention: 10 min of auditory, tactile (moderate touch stroking or massage) and visual stimulation, followed by 5 min of vestibular stimulation | Kangaroo Care group and control group | Satisfaction Survey | No significant differences occurred between the groups in the subscaleor on the three global items: whether the mother would recommend the study to others, the degree to which she changed as a person, and the degree to which she changed as a mother. On the intervention satisfaction subscale at discharge, ATVV mothers had significantly higher scores on Item #8 (learn new ways to stimulate and teach my infant) than did the other two groups |
Livingston et al. 2009 [26] | RCT | 12 | Mothers of infants with a minimal gestation of 32 weeks, intact skin and were able to receive massage as determined by the attending neonatologist | Massage only | Total of 20 min, beginning and ending with 5 min of containment, and the middle 10 min consisting of infant massage, which included stroking of the skin (arms, legs, stomach, chest, back, face and head) | Yes | Caregiver satisfaction survey, BDI-II | Both groups demonstrated a decrease in depressive Symptoms All caregivers in the massage group reported high levels of satisfaction Other measures of satisfaction (e.g. caregiver’s comfort while massaging infant, caregiver’s comfort while holding infant) remained equally high at day 7 and at the 1- month follow-up |
Letzkus et al. 2021 [27] | Single cohort, feasibility pilot | 12 | English-speaking mothers of infants ≤ 32 weeks gestation at birth without social circumstances precluding maternal presence at bedside | Massage as Component | Intervention bundle was composed of 5 evidence-based practice interventions that included massage. It was recommended that massage be performed 15 min twice a day and at least 2 h apart between sessions | None | PSS-NICU, PROMIS-Anxiety Self-report diary | PSS-NICU revealed a decrease in the total score from 7.4 ± 0.8 prior to intervention start to 5.7 ± 0.7 prior to NICU discharge (P = .02) Participation in the intervention bundle did not result in increased anxiety. A decrease in the depression raw scores was noted in participating mothers (11.1 ± 0.9 prior to intervention start vs 9.0 ± 0.5 prior to NICU discharge; P = .002, paired t test) |
Lotfalipour et al. 2019 [28] | RCT | 52 | Mothers of infants 30–37 weeks gestational age at birth | Massage only | 15 min total massage in 3 phases lasting 5 min each | Yes | POMS | Mean mood scores of mothers with preterm infants were not significantly different between the control and intervention groups before massage, but was significantly different after the intervention |
Matricardi et al. 2013 [19] | RCT | 42 | Mothers and fathers of singleton infants ≤ 32 weeks gestational age | Massage as component | Field Method: Two 10 min sessions of moderate pressure strokes followed by kinesthetic stimulation | Yes | PSS-NICU | Mothers reported more stress compared with fathers, above all for PRA. A parental intervention was effective in reducing stress-role alteration in mothers, but not fathers |
Pineda et al. 2021 [11] | RCT | 70 | Parents of infants ≤ 32 weeks gestation Racial/Ethnic Characteristics: Black = 44% | Massage as component | 5 modes of sensory intervention: Depending on infant's age and individual tolerance, tactile interventions employed included gentle human touch, skin-to-skin care; weekly modifications made if necessary | Yes | PSS-NICU, STAI, EPDS, PPQ, MCQ, BDI-II | No differences between standard-of-care and treatment groups for parent outcome measures reached significance at term equivalent age or at one year follow up |
Pineda et al. 2020 [29] | Prospective quasi-experimental with historical controls | 30 | Mothers of infants ≤ 32 weeks gestation Racial/Ethnic Characteristics: Black = 41% | Massage as component | 5 modes of sensory intervention: Depending on infant's age and tolerance, tactile interventions employed included gentle human touch, skin-to-skin care or massage with a targeted minimum of 3 h by term equivalent age | Historical control that received standard of care | PSS, STAI, EPDS, PPQ, Parental Role Alterations subscale from PSS, MCQ | Mothers who received the SENSE program had more confidence, measured by the MCQ after controlling for infant and maternal factors There were no other relationships between group assignment and any of the other maternal factors |
Shoghi et al. 2018 [30] | RCT | 40 | Mothers of late preterm infants (34–37 weeks gestational age) | Massage only | A head-to-toe massage was given to fully naked or diapered neonates over 15 min | Yes | Maternal Attachment Behaviors Scale | The study showed a statistically significant difference between baseline and postintervention in maternal attachment behaviors for both groups. A significant between group difference existed postintervention for maternal attachment between intervention and control groups |
White-Traut et al. 2013 [31] | RCT | 198 | Mothers of infants 29–34 weeks gestation 2 + risk factors (eg., minority, low education) Racial/Ethnic Characteristics: Black = 50% Hispanic = 50% | Massage as component | (1) twice-daily infant stimulation using the ATVV (auditory, tactile, visual, and vestibular-rocking stimulation) and (2) four maternal participatory guidance sessions plus two telephone calls by a nurse-community advocate team | Parent Education Program | NCAST, DMC | Results identified a trend toward more positive mother-infant interaction during both feeding and play for dyads who received the H-HOPE intervention compared to those in the attention control group, and these differences were significant or marginally significant when covariates were controlled |
White-Traut et al. 2012 [32] | RCT | 26 | Mothers of infants < 1750 g at birth without history of significant mental illness Racial/Ethnic Characteristics: Black = 69% White = 15% Other16% | Massage as component | ATVV intervention: 10 min of auditory, tactile (moderate touch stroking or massage) and visual stimulation, followed by 5 min of vestibular stimulation | Kangaroo Care group | Infant engagement and disengagement cues | ATVV elicited more disengagement than did kangaroo care. Separate analysis of the subtle and potent behavioral cues revealed that the ATVV intervention elicited significantly more potent engagement, subtle disengagement, and potent disengagement behaviors from infants |