Do complementary therapies reduce the length of stay (LOS) for preterm infants (PIs) in neonatal intensive care unit (NICU)?
Item
- Title
- Do complementary therapies reduce the length of stay (LOS) for preterm infants (PIs) in neonatal intensive care unit (NICU)?
- Author(s)
- Haschke, Z
- Abstract
- Background: Worldwide an estimated 15 million babies are born prematurely each year, and this number is rising. Previous literature reviews suggest complementary therapies offer health benefits to PIs in NICU and cost benefits to healthcare providers; however, no up to date literature reports which interventions are of greatest benefit. Objective: The aim of this literature review was to critically evaluate literature in the past 10 years, comparing the effectiveness of various complementary therapies for PIs in the NICU and whether there is a role for Osteopathic Manipulative Treatment (OMT) as an adjunct to the standard NICU care protocol. Design: A structured literature review. Methods: A rigorous systematic search was conducted on various electronic databases for appropriate literature meeting the inclusion criteria of PIs < 38 weeks gestation and the primary outcome measure of LOS. The explicit search strategy was conducted between the 15th of August 2019 and the 19th of October 2019. Eligible studies were then critically evaluated using the Strength of Recommendation Taxonomy (SORT) method to ascertain the study quality. Results: The systematic database search returned a total of 945 records. Following the analysis process 18 studies met the eligibility criteria for this review. The SORT analysis score across all studies showed three high-quality studies; three medium-to-high quality studies and 12 limited-quality studies. Nine studies reported statistical significance. Discussion: Analysis of the studies included in this review supports recent systematic literature reviews in showing the efficacy of various complementary therapies in reducing the LOS in NICU for PIs. There is strong evidence for osteopathy to complement standard NICU care and opportunity to combine treatment modalities. However, a definite conclusion cannot be drawn due the heterogeneity of studies. High quality RCT investigations with homogenous design, long-term follow-up, larger sample size, multiple NICU sites and a strict treatment protocol are required. Conclusion: Various complementary therapies, excluding V-OMT are effective in reducing the LOS for premature infants in NICU. There is promising evidence to warrant future high-quality research trials for both osteopathy and multi-modal complementary therapies in neonatology.
- presented at
- European School of Osteopathy
- Date Accepted
- 2020
- Date Submitted
- 28.10.2020 18:08:19
- Type
- osteo_thesis
- Language
- English
- Submitted by:
- 62
- Pub-Identifier
- 16664
- Inst-Identifier
- 1229
- Keywords
- premature infants, complementary and alternative therapies, neonatal intensive care unit, length of hospital stay
- Recommended
- 0
- Item sets
- Thesis
Haschke, Z, “Do complementary therapies reduce the length of stay (LOS) for preterm infants (PIs) in neonatal intensive care unit (NICU)?”, Osteopathic Research Web, accessed May 1, 2025, https://www.osteopathic-research.com/s/orw/item/191