Table 1 Characteristics of the included studies

Keltner[20]

Inclusion criteria:

Intervention group: Supports to Access Rural Services (STARS), met weekly with a family service worker for one year. This has 3 main domains: Staff training (learning about disability, recognizing health and social disorders, crisis intervention, cultural sensitivity, community liaison skills and maintaining realistic expectations); STARS activities to support mothers' self-esteem and other family members; case co-ordination: to identify the families' needs earlier and to provide the related support to access services.

Nursing Child Assessment Teaching Scale (NCATS) (Barnard [26]): It has six sub scales, four of which focus on the parents and two on the child.

NCATS means subscales scores changes after one year:

RCT, USA, community setting

40 women who had children age between 12 and 36 months; maternal IQ < 85; low income families.

Parent’s subs-sales domains are: child's cues, responsiveness to distress, social-emotional interaction, and cognition growth fostering.

For mother's sensitivity to child's cues: 1.1 in the STARS group compared with 0.1 in the control.

Intervention group: Mean age 25.4 years; mean IQ = 59; mean maternal years of education 10.5 years; mean number of children 2.2; mean child age 24.5 months; 46% were married.

Control group: Mean maternal age 22.6 years; mean = IQ 62.6; mean maternal years of education 11.5 years; mean number of children 1.8; mean child age 27.8 months; 31% were married

Control group: received a monthly contact by telephone, in-person assessments every 6 months.

Child sub scales are: clarity of cues and responsiveness to parents. Scoring is by the number of yes out of the 73 items.

Mother's responsiveness to distress: 2 in the STARS group compared with 0.1 in the control.

Follow-up points: baseline, 6 months, 12 months.

Mother's social-emotional growth fostering: 1.2 for the STARS group compared with -0.1 in the control.

Cognitive growth fostering: 2.2 in the STARS group and 1.0 in the control group.

Child's clarity of cues: 0.4 in the STARS group compared with -0.6 in the control and on child.

Child’s responsiveness to parents: 1.6 in the STARS group compared with -0.2 in the control.

Mother-child interaction at 12 months: 8.3 in the STARS and 0.4 in the control, p < 0.05.

Scafidi[22]

Inclusion criteria:

Massage group:

1) Brazelton Neonatal Behaviour Assessment scale (Brazelton [27]): it is neuro-behavioural assessments to newborn’s abilities. The scale consists of 28 behavioural items scored on a nine-point scale and 18 elicited reflexes scoring on a three points scale.

Brazelton score(mean, Sd) massage therapy vs. control at day 10:

RCT, USA, hospital setting

HIV-exposed babies; delivered vaginally; average gestation age 39 weeks.

3×15-minute periods during three consecutive hours every day for 10 days (Monday to Friday). First session was begun within 30 minutes following the noon feeding, the second scheduled in 45 minutes after the completion of the first session, and the third session was within 45 minutes after the completion of the second session.

Habituation: 6.8 (0.4) versus 4.6 (0.5), p = 0.01.

Orientation: 4.5 (0.3) versus 4.4 (0.5), p > 0.05.

Exclusion criteria:

Babies with chromosomal aberrations; congenital heart malformations; infections: meningitis, herpes encephalitis; ventilatory assistance, medically unstable; receiving intravenous medications or feedings were excluded.

A 28 singleton neonates identified as HIV-exposed. Women were 67% African American and 33% Hispanic.

2) Weight gain

Motor: massage therapy group 5.2 (0.5) versus 4.5 (0.4), p = 0.001.

Range of state: 4.3 (0.4) vs. 3.6(0.3), p = 0.05.

Control group:

Regulation of states: 4 (0.6) vs. 4.5(0.7), p > 0.05.

No massage

Both received standard care

Autonomic stability: 6.2 (0.7) versus 5 (0.5), p = 0.003.

Both groups received a low number of visits by their parents (mean =4 in 10 days).

Follow-up points: at day 1 and day 10

Reflexes: 2.2 (0.3) versus 2.7 (0.2), P > 0.05.

Excitability: 1.5 (0.4) versus 3.2 (0.4), p = 0.01.

Depression: 3(0.4) versus 2.9 (0.4), P > 0.05.

Stress behaviours: 1.8 (0.2) versus 3.6 (0.5), p = 0.004.

Weight gain: 33.4 (4.3) versus 26.3 (3.9), p = 0.01.

Barbosa Regia[21]

24 HIV-positive pregnant women and their newborn babies, age range between 19–44 years, 17 (71%) were not married, 1 (4.2%) was a widow, and 6 (25%) were single. Only 58% had completed primary schooling, 25% had planned their pregnancy.

Intervention group (n = 12): An educational video to promote attachment between mothers and their newborns provided. The video was demonstrated by trained nurses in the prenatal period.

The 0–6 month Mother-baby Interaction Observation scale (Schermann [24]): It is a direct observation assessment of the behaviours between mothers and babies. It contains 21 items, 12 are related to mother’s behaviour and 8 to baby’s, 1 item for the mutual interaction.

Behaviours comparison between video and control groups for all five degrees of reaction from low to constant (KS*, p < 0.05):

RCT, Brazil, hospital setting

Verbal communication with the baby (KS = 1.255, p = 0.1).

Eye contact (KS = 1.837, p = 0.002).

The amount of positive affect (KS = 2.44, p = 0.0).

Control group (n = 12): no intervention

Domains related to eye contact, attention to the baby, reactions to the child’s crying and sensitivity and physical contact with babies were observed in the study and rated as: None, low, moderate, maximum and constant reaction at 48 hours after delivery.

Mother’s attention to baby (KS = 1.255, p =0.0).

Sensitivity comparison (KS = 1.837, p = 0.002).

Comforting the babies when they cried (KS = 1.414, p = 0.037).

Reaction to crying (KS = 1.414, p = 0.037.

Response intensity (KS = 1.837, p = 0.002).