Kangaroo mother care for preterm infants and child development – evidence from São Paulo, Brazil

ABSTRACT

Globally, an estimated 15 million children are born prematurely each year, resulting in a high burden of under-five mortality and neurodevelopmental disability. Kangaroo Mother Care (KMC) is a key intervention to support the development of preterm infants. However, evidence on the impact of KMC in routine care settings remains limited. This paper examines the associations between maternal KMC efforts and child development among preterm infants using data from a prospective cohort study conducted in São Paulo, Brazil. Study outcomes were height-for-age z-scores (HAZ) and cognitive development at age 3 years. Practicing KMC was positively associated with HAZ (+0.91 SD, 95% CI [0.126, 1.695]), and cognition (+0.37 SD, [0.034, 0.806]) of preterm children. The results suggest that KMC can improve children’s cognitive and physical development. New programmes to increase KMC uptake in the setting studied may be beneficial for both mothers and their preterm children.

KEYWORDS:

• Preterm children
• Kangaroo mother care
• cognitive
• stunting
• physical development

Acknowledgment

We would like to acknowledge and thank the staff at the University Hospital of São Paulo as well as all study subjects for their support of this study.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Availability of data and materials

The datasets used in analysis during the current study are available from the corresponding author on request.

Additional information

Funding

This research did not receive any specific grant from funding agencies in the public, commercial, or not-for-profit sectors.

Notes on contributors

Silas Onyango

Silas Onyango is a doctoral student at the Swiss Tropical and Public Health Institute and the University of Basel. He is also a researcher at the African population and Health Research Center.

Alexandra Brentani

Alexandra Brentani, is a faculty member in the Department of Pediatrics at the University of São Paulo Medical School.

Günther Fink

Günther Fink is Associate Professor at the University of Basel as well as Head of the Household Economics and Health Systems Research Unit at the Swiss Tropical and Public Health Institute.