Effects of Maternal and Infant Massage on Breastfeeding and Mother-Infant Bonding

What Was Tested

The trial (not phased) is built around Oxytocin.

This study aims to evaluate the effects of different massage techniques applied to mothers and infants on breastfeeding parameters and mother-infant bonding during the postpartum period.

It had four arms (groups): Control Group (no intervention), Infant Massage Group (experimental), Oxytocin Massage Group (experimental) and Infant Massage and Oxytocin Massage Group (experimental).

Mothers and their infants in the control group will not receive any experimental intervention, including oxytocin massage or infant massage, from the researcher. They will continue to receive the hospital's standard routine postpartum care and breastfeeding counseling according to the institutional protocol. Assessments will be conducted before hospital discharge (pre-test) and at 4 weeks postpartum (post-test).

Mothers in this group will administer infant massage to their own infants once daily for four weeks, for approximately 15 minutes per session, in accordance with the standardized infant massage protocol described above.

Mothers in this group will receive oxytocin massage from their partners/their infants' fathers once daily for four weeks, in accordance with the standardized oxytocin massage protocol described above.

The registry classes the interventions as behavioral.

More on the Plan

The postpartum period is a critical period during which mothers and newborns adapt to important physiological, psychological, and social changes .

During this period, maternal postpartum recovery, neonatal adaptation to life, successful initiation of breastfeeding, and the development of the mother-infant relationship are interrelated processes.

In particular, the first hours and days after birth are critical for establishing breastfeeding behaviors, regulating milk production, and strengthening mother-infant interaction.

Initiation of breastfeeding during the first hours after birth is one of the key practices supporting the newborn's access to colostrum, early immune protection, and the continuation of breastfeeding.

Who Took Part

136 planned participants were the target.

It was open to women only.

Healthy volunteers were not accepted; participants needed the condition being studied.

Examples of who could join: Being within the first 24 hours postpartum. Having a singleton birth. Rooming-in with her infant during the postpartum period. Being willing to regularly administer infant massage to her infant for 4 weeks postpartum. Being able to speak Turkish and having no condition that would interfere with communication.

The full record lists 13 inclusion and 8 exclusion criteria; among the exclusions: the mother cannot be reached at 4 weeks postpartum; infant massage is performed fewer than twice per week; oxytocin massage is performed fewer than twice per week.

How the Study Was Run

The set-up was randomized, parallel-group and open-label.

Random assignment meant chance, not the researchers, decided who got Oxytocin and who got the comparison, which limits bias.

Groups ran in parallel: each of the participants stayed in one arm throughout.

Being open-label, the Oxytocin study did not mask who received what.

It started in 2026-11-01 with completion listed for 2027-07-01.

Its stated primary purpose is treatment.

What Was Measured

The main thing measured (primary outcome): Breastfeeding Quality (time frame: Before hospital discharge (pre-test) and at 4 weeks postpartum (post-test)). Mother-to-infant bonding (time frame: Before hospital discharge (pre-test) and at 4 weeks postpartum (post-test)).

What This Means in Plain Language

Put simply, this is a not phased, randomized trial of Oxytocin in 136 people.

Its status is not yet recruiting; no results are posted to the registry yet, so nothing here describes outcomes.

More context: the Oxytocin compound page, all human trials.