Should Fathers Also Do Kangaroo Care?
Akan Yaman1, İbrahim Kandemir1, Eren Özek2
1Department of Pediatrics, Division of Neonatalogy, Gungoren Hospital, Gungoren, İstanbul.
Insights
Maternal and paternal Kangaroo care (KC) similarly impacts infant vital signs. Both parents significantly increase infant cerebral oxygenation (rSO2), with slightly higher values favoring mothers, though differences are clinically insignificant.
Area of Science:
- Neonatal care
- Developmental pediatrics
- Infant physiology
Background:
- Kangaroo care (KC) is a method of skin-to-skin contact beneficial for preterm infants.
- Limited research compares the effects of maternal versus paternal KC on infant physiological parameters.
Purpose of the Study:
- To compare the effects of maternal KC and paternal KC on vital signs and cerebral oxygen saturation (rSO2) in preterm infants.
Main Methods:
- A randomized study involving 35 preterm infants (≤32 weeks gestation).
- Measured infant body temperature, respiratory rate, heart rate, SpO2, and rSO2 during three periods: pre-KC, during KC (mother or father), and post-KC.
- Compared parameters within and between maternal and paternal KC groups.
Main Results:
- No significant differences in vital signs were observed during the three periods, within or between parent groups.
- Cerebral oxygen saturation (rSO2) significantly increased during and after KC for both mothers and fathers (p <0.001).
- rSO2 values were significantly higher during and after maternal KC compared to paternal KC (p=0.015 and p=0.046, respectively).
Conclusions:
- While maternal KC showed slightly higher rSO2 values, the differences are clinically negligible.
- The active participation of fathers in KC should be encouraged in Neonatal Intensive Care Units (NICUs).
Objectives:
The aim of the study is to compare the effect of maternal and paternal Kangaroo care (KC) on vital signs and cerebral oxygen saturation (rSO2) parameters.
Methods:
This randomized study included 35 preterm infants born at 32 weeks gestation or earlier. The body temperature, respiratory rate, heart rate, oxygen saturation (sPO2), and cerebral oxygen saturation (rSO2) were measured at the postnatal 35th week of gestation during three periods: in the incubator before KC, during KC with the mother or father, and in the incubator after KC. The measured parameters of the three periods were compared within each group (mother or father) and between the groups (mother and father).
Results:
There was no statistically significant difference between the vital signs during the three periods, both in the mother and father groups, and between the parents.The rSO2 values increased significantly in both parents (p <0.001) during and after KC. When we compared parents, rSO2 values were significantly higher during (p = 0.015) and after (p = 0.046) mother KC.
Conclusion:
The difference between M-KC and F-KC can be ignored as the cerebral near infra-red spectroscopy values are within normal limits. The active participation of fathers in KC should be encouraged by health professionals in all NICUs.
Key Points:
· * The vital signs during and after kangaroo care, both in the mother and father groups, were similar.. · * The rSO2 values increased significantly in both parents during and after kangaroo care, favoring the mother.. · * This difference can be ignored as the cerebral near-infra-red spectroscopy values are within normal limits in both groups, and the participation of fathers in kangaroo care should be encouraged..
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