Skin-to-Skin Contact Boosts Brain Growth in Very Preterm Infants

WEDNESDAY, Oct. 1, 2025 (HealthDay News) -- Skin-to-skin contact is linked to brain growth in very preterm infants, according to a study published online Sept. 24 in Neurology.Katherine E. Travis, Ph.D., from Stanford University in California, and colleagues examined the association between in-hospital skin-to-skin care and white matter microstructure in very preterm infants. The analysis included 88 preterm infants born at <32 weeks gestational age who underwent routine predischarge magnetic resonance imaging.The researchers found that skin-to-skin care duration per instance was positively associated with mean diffusivity in the cingulum (B = 0.002; ΔR2 = 0.080) and anterior thalamic radiations (ATR; B = 0.002; ΔR2 = 0.057). There was also a positive association between skin-to-skin care daily exposure rate and ATR mean diffusivity (B = 0.038; ΔR2 = 0.046). Both skin-to-skin measures had a negative association with ATR fractional anisotropy (duration: B = −0.0005, ΔR2 = 0.046; rate: B = −0.016, ΔR2 = 0.075). Findings persisted when adjusting for socioeconomic status and visitation frequency and after excluding infants with white matter injury."Our findings add to growing evidence that white matter development is sensitive to a preterm infant’s experience while in the hospital," Travis said in a statement. "Skin-to-skin care not only provides preterm infants with family connections through bonding, it may also be encouraging new connections within the brain itself, improving a baby’s brain health overall."Abstract/Full TextEditorial (subscription or payment may be required).Sign up for our weekly HealthDay newsletter