TITLE:
The Effect of Massage with Oils on the Growth of Term Infants: A Randomized Controlled Trial
AUTHORS:
Mandana Mirmohammadali, Fatemeh Sadat Hosseini-Baharanchi, Ziba Raisi Dehkordi, Reza Bekhradi, Masoumeh Delaram
KEYWORDS:
Full Term Infant, Oil Massage, Growth, Repeated Measures Analysis of Covariance
JOURNAL NAME:
Open Journal of Pediatrics,
Vol.5 No.3,
September
4,
2015
ABSTRACT: Background
and Aims: Infant massage could potentially benefit both physiological and
psychological health. This study aims to determine the effect of massage with
oils on the growth of full-term infants, which is given by their mothers. Study
Design: This is a double-blind randomized controlled trial which was conducted
on full term infants visited in the nine Public Health Centers of Shahrekord,
Iran in 2010. Material and Methods: This study included 217 infants. Inclusion
criteria for the infants were age scale between 10 to 15 days, full term
gestation, birth weight of 2500 grams at least, Apgar score of 7 or above, no
resuscitation after the birth, exclusive breastfeeding during the study,
medically stable condition without any need for drugs, nulliparous. The infants
were randomized into four groups: massage with sunflower oil, massage with
sesame oil, massage without oil, and no massage (control group). Massage was
given by mothers twice a day for 4 weeks, starting from the 10 - 15th day of life. Weight and height were measured weekly. At last, Repeated Measures
Analysis of Covariance was employed to
analyze the data. Birth weight (height) as well as mean frequency of
breastfeeding during the study was deemed as covariates. Results: The findings
showed that the mean of weight and height was significantly different between
groups over time, respectively (P = 0.005, P