TY - JOUR
T1 - Kangaroo mother care had a protective effect on the volume of brain structures in young adults born preterm
AU - Charpak, Nathalie
AU - Tessier, Rejean
AU - Ruiz, Juan Gabriel
AU - Uriza, Felipe
AU - Hernandez, José Tiberio
AU - Cortes, Darwin
AU - Montealegre-Pomar, Adriana
N1 - Publisher Copyright:
© 2022 The Authors. Acta Paediatrica published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd on behalf of Foundation Acta Paediatrica.
PY - 2022/5
Y1 - 2022/5
N2 - Aim: The protective effects of Kangaroo mother care (KMC) on the neurodevelopment of preterm infants are well established, but we do not know whether the benefits persist beyond infancy. Our aim was to determine whether providing KMC in infancy affected brain volumes in young adulthood. Method: Standardised cognitive, memory and motor skills tests were used to determine the brain volumes of 20-year-old adults who had formed part of a randomised controlled trial of KMC versus incubator care. Multivariate analysis of brain volumes was conducted according to KMC exposure. Results: The study comprised 178 adults born preterm: 97 had received KMC and 81 were incubator care controls. Bivariate analysis showed larger volumes of total grey matter, basal nuclei and cerebellum in those who had received KMC, and the white matter was better organised. This means that the volumes of the main brain structures associated with intelligence, attention, memory and coordination were larger in the KMC group. Multivariate lineal regression analysis demonstrated the direct relationship between brain volumes and duration of KMC, after controlling for potential confounders. Conclusion: Our findings suggest that the neuroprotective effects of KMC for preterm infants persisted beyond childhood and improved their lifetime functionality and quality of life.
AB - Aim: The protective effects of Kangaroo mother care (KMC) on the neurodevelopment of preterm infants are well established, but we do not know whether the benefits persist beyond infancy. Our aim was to determine whether providing KMC in infancy affected brain volumes in young adulthood. Method: Standardised cognitive, memory and motor skills tests were used to determine the brain volumes of 20-year-old adults who had formed part of a randomised controlled trial of KMC versus incubator care. Multivariate analysis of brain volumes was conducted according to KMC exposure. Results: The study comprised 178 adults born preterm: 97 had received KMC and 81 were incubator care controls. Bivariate analysis showed larger volumes of total grey matter, basal nuclei and cerebellum in those who had received KMC, and the white matter was better organised. This means that the volumes of the main brain structures associated with intelligence, attention, memory and coordination were larger in the KMC group. Multivariate lineal regression analysis demonstrated the direct relationship between brain volumes and duration of KMC, after controlling for potential confounders. Conclusion: Our findings suggest that the neuroprotective effects of KMC for preterm infants persisted beyond childhood and improved their lifetime functionality and quality of life.
KW - Kangaroo mother care
KW - grey matter
KW - magnetic resonance imaging
KW - premature infants
KW - white matter
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85123926102&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1111/apa.16265
DO - 10.1111/apa.16265
M3 - Article
C2 - 35067976
AN - SCOPUS:85123926102
SN - 0803-5253
VL - 111
SP - 1004
EP - 1014
JO - Acta Paediatrica, International Journal of Paediatrics
JF - Acta Paediatrica, International Journal of Paediatrics
IS - 5
ER -