The Acceptability, Feasibility, and Effectiveness of Breast Massage Combined with Acupoint Stimulation to Promote the Volume of Human Milk in Mothers with Preterm Infants: A Pilot Study

Table 2

Characteristics of mothers of preterm infants who participated in the pilot trial.

Variable	Experimental group (n = 16)	Control group (n = 17)
Age, y; Mean ± SD (min-max)	31.06 ± 5.07 (25.00–44.00)	30.88 ± 3.30 (26.00–41.00)	0.902^a
Ethnicity, n (%)			—
Han	16 (100.00)	17 (100.00)
Other nationalities	0 (0.00)	0 (0.00)
Level of education, n (%)			0.334^b
High school	1 (12.50)	1 (5.88)
Junior college	7 (37.50)	4 (23.53)
University	8 (50.00)	12 (70.59)
Does mother have a job? n (%)			0.251^c
Yes	12 (75.00)	14 (82.35)
No	4 (25.00)	3 (17.65)
Does mother have an insurance? n (%)			1.001^c
Yes	16 (100.00)	15 (88.24)
No	0 (0.00)	2 (11.76)
Annual income, n (%)			0.311^b
$1,000–$2,000	3 (18.75)	1 (5.88)
$2,000–$5,000	8 (50.00)	12 (70.59)
$5,000–$10,000	4 (25.00)	4 (23.53)
More than $10,000	1 (6.25)	0 (0.00)
Residence, n (%)			1.002^c
Local	16 (100.00)	16 (94.12)
Out of Shanghai	0 (0.00)	1 (5.82)
Type of pregnancy, n (%)			1.002^c
Simple	13 (81.25)	13 (76.47)
Multiple	3 (18.75)	4 (23.53)
Parity, n (%)			0.291^c
Primiparous	10 (62.50)	13 (76.47)
Multiparous	6 (37.50)	4 (23.53)
Mode of delivery, n (%)			0.762^c
Vaginal	9 (56.25)	11 (64.71)
Caesarean	7 (43.75)	6 (35.29)
Birth weight of preterm infant, g	1.73 ± 0.34 (1.01–2.19)	1.58 ± 0.23 (1.10–1.98)	0.162^a
Mean ± SD (min-max)
Gestational age at birth	31.81 ± 1.53 (28.50–33.60)	31.91 ± 1.51 (28.40–33.60)	0.852^a
Mean ± SD (min-max)
Previous breastfeeding experience, n (%)			0.291^c
Yes	0 (0.00)	3 (17.65)
No	16 (100.00)	14 (82.35)
Timing of the decision on breastfeeding, n (%)			0.301^b
Before pregnancy	3 (18.75)	3 (17.65)
During pregnancy	6 (37.50)	7 (41.18)
Since birth	2 (12.50)	0 (0.00)
During postpartum	5 (31.25)	7 (41.18)

^aT test. ^bPearson’s chi-squared test. ^cFisher’s exact test.