ArticleEClinicalMedicine2021
Preterm care during the COVID-19 pandemic: A comparative risk analysis of neonatal deaths averted by kangaroo mother care versus mortality due to SARS-CoV-2 infection.
Article in EClinicalMedicine, 2021. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 35 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.
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Who cites it
35 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it, 94 citations in OpenAlex.
- Pooled it
- Persistent SARS-CoV-2 Positive Tests in Neonates: Clinical Outcomes, Transmission Pathways, and Immune Vulnerability-Case Series.Children (Basel, Switzerland) · 2026Article
- Postpartum Mental Health Problems in the Mothers of Very, Moderately and Late Preterm Infants During and After COVID-19 Pandemic: A Cross-Sectional Comparison Study and Possible Risk Factors.Depression and anxiety · 2026Article
- Challenges and limitations of evaluating the efficacy of music intervention for preterm infants: auditory development, methodological heterogeneity, medical complexity, parental involvement and environmental barriers.Frontiers in pediatrics · 2026Article
- Kangaroo Method Care: Benefits, Proponents and Barriers: A Narrative Review.Iranian journal of public health · 2025Review
- Born Too Soon: learning from the past to accelerate action in the next decade.Reproductive health · 2025Review
- Perinatal mortality and other severe adverse outcomes following planned birth at 39 weeks versus expectant management in low-risk women: a population based cohort study.EClinicalMedicine · 2025Article
- Effects of kangaroo mother care restrictions during the COVID-19 pandemic on feeding and physiological parameters in preterm neonates: a cohort study.Revista da Associacao Medica Brasileira (1992) · 2025Article
- Hypothermia in preterm infants admitted to low-resource neonatal units in northern Nigeria: an observational study of occurrence and risk factors.BMC pediatrics · 2024Observational
- Effect of the COVID-19 pandemic on utilization of essential health services in Iran evidence from an interrupted time series analysis.BMC public health · 2024Article
- Perception and Practice of Kangaroo Mother Care Among Mothers of Pre-term Babies at a National Referral Hospital in a Limited Resource Setting.The East African health research journal · 2024Article
- Becoming first time father of premature newborn during the first wave of the pandemic: a case study approach.Frontiers in psychology · 2024Article
- The impact of pandemic restrictive visiting policies on infant wellbeing in a NICU.Pediatric research · 2023Article
- COVID-19 Disease in Under-5 Children: Current Status and Strategies for Prevention including Vaccination.Vaccines · 2023Review
- Challenges Faced by Mothers Practicing Kangaroo Mother Care (KMC) in a Resource-Limited Setting During the COVID-19 Pandemic: Insights From the Voices of Mothers of Preterm Babies and Their Suggested Solutions.Global pediatric health · 2023Article
- Breastfeeding during the COVID-19 pandemic.Frontiers in pediatrics · 2023Review
- Geotemporal analysis of perinatal care changes and maternal mental health: an example from the COVID-19 pandemic.Archives of women's mental health · 2022Observational
- Article
- The Lived Experiences of Women without COVID-19 in Breastfeeding Their Infants during the Pandemic: A Descriptive Phenomenological Study.International journal of environmental research and public health · 2022Article
- Article
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
25 authors at 16 institutions in 12 countries.
Funding
Abstract
backgroundCOVID-19 is disrupting health services for mothers and newborns, particularly in low- and middle-income countries (LMIC). Preterm newborns are particularly vulnerable. We undertook analyses of the benefits of kangaroo mother care (KMC) on survival among neonates weighing ≤2000 g compared with the risk of SARS-CoV-2 acquired from infected mothers/caregivers.
methodsWe modelled two scenarios over 12 months. Scenario 1 compared the survival benefits of KMC with universal coverage (99%) and mortality risk due to COVID-19. Scenario 2 estimated incremental deaths from reduced coverage and complete disruption of KMC. Projections were based on the most recent data for 127 LMICs (~90% of global births), with results aggregated into five regions.
findingsOur worst-case scenario (100% transmission) could result in 1,950 neonatal deaths from COVID-19. Conversely, 125,680 neonatal lives could be saved with universal KMC coverage. Hence, the benefit of KMC is 65-fold higher than the mortality risk of COVID-19. If recent evidence of 10% transmission was applied, the ratio would be 630-fold. We estimated a 50% reduction in KMC coverage could result in 12,570 incremental deaths and full disruption could result in 25,140 incremental deaths, representing a 2·3-4·6% increase in neonatal mortality across the 127 countries.
interpretationThe survival benefit of KMC far outweighs the small risk of death due to COVID-19. Preterm newborns are at risk, especially in LMICs where the consequences of disruptions are substantial. Policymakers and healthcare professionals need to protect services and ensure clearer messaging to keep mothers and newborns together, even if the mother is SARS-CoV-2-positive.
fundingEunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health & Human Development; Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation; Elma Philanthropies; Wellcome Trust; and Joint Global Health Trials scheme of Department of Health and Social Care, Department for International Development, Medical Research Council, and Wellcome Trust.
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