Abdominal Massage for Newborn Jaundice

The goal of this clinical trial is to learn whether infant abdominal massage can help reduce bilirubin levels and improve bilirubin elimination in healthy full-term newborns. The study will include 84 newborns born at 37 weeks of gestation or later, with a birth weight of at least 2,500 grams, stable vital signs, and no major health problems.

The main questions it aims to answer are:

Does abdominal massage reduce transcutaneous bilirubin levels during the first 120 hours after birth? Does abdominal massage increase bowel movements or promote earlier passage of meconium? Does abdominal massage reduce the need for phototherapy, the duration of phototherapy, or the length of hospital stay? Is abdominal massage safe and feasible for full-term newborns? Researchers will compare newborns who receive routine newborn care plus abdominal massage with newborns who receive routine newborn care alone to determine whether abdominal massage improves bilirubin-related and clinical outcomes.

Participants will:

Be randomly assigned in a 1:1 ratio to either the abdominal massage group or the routine-care group.

Receive routine newborn care, including feeding support, jaundice observation, bilirubin measurement, and phototherapy when clinically indicated.

In the intervention group, receive gentle abdominal massage for 10 to 15 minutes twice daily during hospitalization for 2 to 5 days. Massage will begin at least 1 hour after feeding while the newborn is awake, calm, and medically stable.

Have transcutaneous bilirubin measured at 0-6, 24, 48, 72, 96, and 120 hours after birth. A blood bilirubin test may be performed if the transcutaneous bilirubin level approaches the treatment threshold.

Have information recorded about bowel movements, time of first bowel movement, feeding, diaper use, body weight, phototherapy, length of hospital stay, and any adverse events.

Be followed through medical records for 7 days after discharge to determine whether the newborn returns for evaluation or is readmitted because of jaundice.