IL CANTO MATERNO IN GRAVIDANZA E DOPO IL PARTO: EFFETTI SULL'ATTACCAMENTO MATERNO-NEONATALE E SUL COMPORTAMENTO DEI NEONATI A TERMINE E PRE-TERMINE

Parto prematuro e canto materno: effetti sull’attaccamento post-natale, sul benessere neonatale e sull’allattamento. Studio randomizzato controllato. TIN-Lullabies 2013 Abstract Background: Mother- infant bonding has a well-established importance for the development, cognitive and behavioral well-being of the baby. Consider a premature birth: mother and infant are in a situation of greater vulnerability. That's why it is even more necessary that midwives must provide for the protection of their health. In this context, the use of maternal singing to the baby could be a tool to suggest mothers to be able to get into the complexity of the situation through a simple but significant and direct channel. Therefore, singing could be a connection that helps the mother and the baby to keep together in a situation in which contact is limited. Mother’s singing could increase the development of the attachment bond, that is crucial for the future health of the child. Objectives: To assess the effect of lullaby maternal singing on postnatal attachment after a premature birth; to evaluate the effect of lullaby maternal singing on wellbeing and behavior of the newborn and on type of feeding up to 3.5 months after randomization. Methods:: It is a single-center randomized controlled trial. Mother and infant whose birth took place between 32 and 34 gestational weeks will be enrolled at Maternal and Neonatal Department at San Gerardo Hospital in Monza. A total of at least 128 new mothers must be included in the study. The recruitment will be done within 48 hours of birth. The data collection will begin after the recruitment and it will end at 3.5 months from randomization. The demographic, social, obstetric data of mother and newborn will be detected and recorded in an appropriate form. The Postnatal Attachment (mother-infant) will be evaluated through Mother-to-Infant Bonding Scale. Data about infant’s vital signs will be taken from the computerized clinical documentation. The data about breastfeeding will be taken during the intermediate evaluations during the hospitalization of babies in NICU and will continue after returning home. Results: The research aims to analyze the effect of maternal singing of lullaby on post-natal attachment, well-being and behavior of the newborn, as well as the type of breastfeeding from birth to 3.5 months after enrollment in a sample of mothers and premature infants whose birth took place between 32 and 34 gestational weeks. Conclusions: Maternal singing of lullaby could be another instrument that midwives can use during the assistance with mothers who live the experience of a premature birth. It could be a stimulus to increase mother-infant attachment and improve neonatal growth.