Impact of neonatal skin care instructions provided by midwives on mothers: A single-center randomized controlled trial

Abstract

Background: Skin care during the neonatal period is important, and midwives are often the primary providers of skincare instructions. In this study, we examined the effect of neonatal skin care instructions provided by midwives on changing the skin care behavior of mothers and the skin condition of their children.

Methods: Consent was obtained from the mothers of infants born in the maternity department of our hospital between September 2021 and October 2022. The participants were randomly assigned to either the conventional skin care group or the novel skin care group. We evaluated their skin conditions and administered a questionnaire at the one-month visit.

Results: Finally, 48 pairs from the conventional group and 51 pairs in the novel group, respectively, were included. There were no differences in the background characteristics between the two groups, and there was no significant difference in the skin conditions at the one-month visit. The novel group showed a higher frequency of moisturizing and a higher rate of adherence to washing with foam and handwashing compared to that in the conventional group. The novel group was more likely to cite midwives as the source of skincare information.

Conclusion: The neonatal skin care instructions provided by midwives were more influenced in the novel skin care regimen. Collaboration with midwives is important during the neonatal period to prevent allergic diseases.