Effect of early kangaroo mother care on time to full feeds in preterm infants - A prospective cohort study

Kangaroo mother care (KMC) is known to reduce neonatal mortality and morbidity. In preterm neonates, KMC is usually initiated only after stabilization. We aimed to assess if early initiation of KMC starting within the first week of life is safe, and reduces the time to full feeds (TFF) in preterm neonates. Prospective cohort study. Preterm neonates (Gestation ≤ 34 weeks, Birth weight ≤ 1250 g). This was studied in two epochs, (epoch 1) which was before early KMC vs. epoch 2 which was after implementation of early KMC even if they needed respiratory support, with umbilical/central lines in situ. The primary outcome of the study was time to establish full feeds (TFF) of 150 ml/kg/day. The neonatal demographic characteristics were comparable between epoch 1 and epoch 2 except for lower gestational age, higher surfactant, and any respiratory support in epoch 2. On univariate analysis, early KMC significantly reduced TFF (12.5 vs. 9 days, P