ArticleBMC pediatrics2026
Impact of the H-HOPE multisensory behavioural intervention plus Kangaroo Mother Care on early growth in preterm infants in Malawi.
Article in BMC pediatrics, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Not yet cited in PubMed.
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Abstract
aimTo evaluate the efficacy of the Hospital-to-Home: Optimizing the Premature Infant’s Environment (H-HOPE) intervention for early infant growth, we compared mother-preterm infant dyads receiving both H-HOPE and Kangaroo Mother Care (KMC) with those receiving KMC only, the standard of care for all preterm infants, at a single hospital in Malawi.
methodA prospective quasi-experimental study design was used at Zomba Central Hospital. Because the intervention took place in a single, large room without any auditory or visual privacy, the enrolment of the two study conditions (KMC only control and H-HOPE + KMC intervention conditions) was sequential to avoid overlap. There were 89 KMC only and 94 H-HOPE + KMC mother-preterm infant dyads in each study condition. Infant birth weight was between 950 and 2400 g. When infants reached clinical stability, the interventions commenced and continued through the 2-week post-discharge follow-up assessment.
resultsNo significant differences were observed in maternal and infant characteristics at baseline between the conditions. After adjusting for covariates, baseline birth weight was not significantly different. A multivariate mixed-effects regression model indicated a similar pattern in both study conditions from birth until 2 weeks post-discharge, characterized by an initial weight decline followed by a steady increase in a quadratic trend. At the 2-week post-discharge follow-up, infants in H-HOPE + KMC study condition showed greater early growth than infants in KMC only (mean weight = 2017.59 g vs. 1856.55 g, p = .03).
conclusionThese results suggest that the H-HOPE + KMC intervention promotes rapid early growth in preterm infants. H-HOPE + KMC is a low-cost, high-impact intervention that complements KMC. These promising pilot results provide initial evidence of the efficacy of H-HOPE + KMC in Malawi and justify the need for an adequately powered study to validate the findings and explore the long-term benefits of an integrated H-HOPE and KMC intervention.
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