Systematic review confirmed the benefits of early skin‐to‐skin contact but highlighted lack of studies on very and extremely preterm infants

Abstract

Aim:We systematically reviewed the literature to identify the benefits of early skinto-skin contact (SSC) for all gestational ages. Methods:The MEDLINE, Embase and CINAHL databases were searched for papers published in English from 1 January 1975 to 31 March 2020. Early SSC was defined as when the infant was placed directly onto the mother's chest within 180 min of birth.Two authors independently searched the databases, appraised study quality and extracted the study design and outcome data. The primary outcomes were the infants' physiological stability after birth: thermoregulation and stabilisation. The secondary outcomes were exclusive breastfeeding and mother-infant interaction.Results: We reviewed 30 studies that assessed the benefits of early SSC: 22 comprised term-born healthy infants and eight focused on preterm or ill infants. These included various gestational ages, birth methods and cultural backgrounds. The studies demonstrated that early SSC stabilised neonatal physiological parameters, promoted exclusive breastfeeding and supported bonding. Most of the data were from term and late preterm births. Conclusion:This systematic review showed that early SSC could be beneficial. Further studies that focus on providing very and extremely preterm infants with SSC, and parental experiences, are needed to enable SSC to be adopted as routine practice.

Protecting Breastfeeding during the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Scoping Review of Perinatal Care Recommendations in the Context of Maternal and Child Well-Being

“…It is known that babies held in SSC were more likely to have been breastfed successfully during their first latch on, had higher blood glucose levels, and had a more stable body temperature. In low-income countries, SSC is recognized as a life-saving intervention and as a non-pharmacological intervention for pain control in infants, increasing the rate of breastfeeding around the world [ 11 , 123 , 124 , 125 ].…”

Impact of suspending labour companionship during the COVID‐19 pandemic on intrapartum care and delivery outcomes

“…Studies have shown that early skin‐to‐skin contact is associated with better physiological neonatal outcomes, promotes exclusive breastfeeding and supports bonding. 8 Thus, as part of the general efforts to promote exclusive breastfeeding, parturients should be allowed to be accompanied by a person of their choice to have earlier initiation of skin‐to‐skin contact.…”

“…Although breastfeeding outcomes were not significantly different between the two groups overall, a closer look at those who had delayed skin‐to‐skin contact beyond 60 min in both groups showed that none of these infants were exclusively breastfed at the time of discharge. Studies have shown that early skin‐to‐skin contact is associated with better physiological neonatal outcomes, promotes exclusive breastfeeding and supports bonding 8 . Thus, as part of the general efforts to promote exclusive breastfeeding, parturients should be allowed to be accompanied by a person of their choice to have earlier initiation of skin‐to‐skin contact.…”

Adult Health and Early Life Adversity: Behind the Curtains of Maternal Care Research

“…Equally important, nearly every hospital in the modern world now applies the “skin-to-skin” approach for newborns where, after some cleaning and collection of vital measures, the newborn is placed naked on the bare mother’s chest and they are both covered with a soft light blanket, typically for over an hour. Newborns who undergo this skin-to-skin practice lose less weight postpartum, grow faster, thermoregulate better, and latch on and begin to suckle earlier than newborns who do not experience skin-to-skin ( Gupta et al, 2021 ), and there are lasting positive effects on the mother–child relationship ( Bigelow and Power, 2020 ). Thus, maternal care not only stimulates the release of growth hormones and factors that enhance newborn health, physical contact between caretaker and offspring immediately after birth promotes behaviors in the offspring that optimize its growth.…”