Randomized clinical trial investigating the effect of consistent, developmentally-appropriate, and evidence-based multisensory exposures in the NICU

Objective Evaluate the effect of a manualized multisensory program, applied across NICU hospitalization, on infant and parent outcomes. Study design Seventy parent-infant dyads (born ≤32 weeks gestation) in a Level IV NICU were randomized at birth to the multisensory program or standard-of-care. Parents in the multisensory group administered prespecified amounts of age-appropriate, evidence-based sensory interventions to their infants each day during NICU hospitalization according to the Supporting and Enhancing NICU Sensory Experiences (SENSE) program. Results Infants who received the SENSE program had more lethargy on the NICU Network Neurobehavioral Scale (NNNS) ( p = 0.05), even after controlling for medical and social risk ( p = 0.043), and had higher Communication scores on the Ages and Stages Questionnaire ( p = 0.04) at 1-year corrected age, but this relationship failed to reach significance after controlling for medical and social risk ( p = 0.12). Conclusion The SENSE program shows promise for improving outcomes, but more research with larger sample sizes is needed.