Effects of Gentle Human Touch and Field Massage on Urine Cortisol Level in Premature Infants: A Randomized, Controlled Clinical Trial

Hospitalization in neonatal intensive care unit may leads to many stresses for premature infants. Since premature infants cannot properly process stressors, identifying interventions that reduce the stress level for them is seems necessary. The aim of present study was to compare the effects of Field massage and Gentle Human Touch (GHT) techniques on the urine level of cortisol, as an indicator of stress in preterm infants.
This randomized, controlled clinical trial was carried out in Al-Zahra hospital, Tabriz. A total of 84 premature infants were randomly assigned into three groups. First groups were touched by their mothers three times a day (15 minutes in each session) for 5 days by GHT technique. The second group was received 15 minutes Field massage with sunflower oil three times a day by their mothers for 5 days. The third group received routine care. In all groups, 24-hours urine samples were collected in the first and sixth day after the intervention and analyzed for cortisol level. Data were analyzed by SPSS software.
There were significant differences between mean of changes in cortisol level between GHT and control groups and Field massage and control groups (0.026).
Although the massage with Field technique resulted in a significant reduction in blood cortisol level, but the GHT technique have also a similar effect. So, both methods are recommended for decreasing of stress in preterm infants.