Effects of therapeutic massage on premature newborn in the neonatal intensive therapy unit: a systematic review

Abstract

INTRODUCTION: The Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) is the place for at-risk newborns who need ongoing care. Massage therapy is a systematic touch by human hands that contributes to weight gain, decreases pain responses and decreases hospital stay. OBJECTIVE: To review the systemic effects of massage therapy on premature infants in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit. METHODOLOGY: This is a systematic review. A search was performed in the Pubmed, Scielo and Lilacs database, with no restrictions related to the year of publication. Only randomized clinical trials were included in this study, with a sample of individuals of both sexes, under 28 days of age and addressing massage therapy related to systemic responses in premature infants in the neonatal intensive care unit. Studies that were related to physical exercise, medication use, oral stimulation and gastrointestinal effects related to massage were excluded. The following descriptors were used: “massage” AND “premature newborn” OR “premature” OR “preterm” AND “neonatal intensive care units”. RESULTS: Of the six articles included in this literature review, five showed satisfactory results on the systemic effects of massage therapy on premature newborns, such as weight gain, decreased length of stay in the NICU, improvement in parasympathetic nervous system function and increased cell cytotoxicity of natural killer cells. Only one study reports that massage therapy does not induce sleep. CONCLUSION: Massage therapy produces systemic beneficial effects in preterm infants admitted to the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit.