Measuring and Reducing Excessive Infant Crying

Hypotheses: The soothing techniques taught to study parents 2-3 wks after birth augment parental soothing skills and reduces infant crying at night (primary outcome) and parental sleep loss, distress, & depression assessed in the home by a masked nurse at 8 wks.

Methods: Term singleton infants with EIC (> 3 hrs/24h) recruited through a program offered to parents at our hospital (4,700 births/yr) will be seen in our clinic 2-3 wks after birth. Consenting families (n=178) will be randomized to standard colic counseling (American Academy of Pediatrics) or to the intervention (adding nurse instruction plus a video and pamphlets). At 8 wks a study nurse will assess parental sleep and distress (Brief Symptom Inventory-18), place dosimeters in rooms where the infant sleeps and spends most time, and apply the actigraph at the ankle. She will collect the devices 5 days later, perform a physical exam at a usual feeding time (when EIC is likely), record infant & maternal behaviors during crying/feeding for the next 15 minutes using unobtrusive, validated methods (Tyson, 1992), and provide maternal support if desired. Standard statistical tests will be used (alpha=0.05; beta = 0.20; effect size =0.5 SD, power = .90).

Inclusion criteria

• term, singleton neonates
• otherwise healthy
• parent must have at least a 6th grade understanding of English or Spanish
• infant must have colic (greater than 3 hours of crying per day)
• OR the infant's crying causes excessive stress on the either parent

Exclusion criteria

• cannot have a condition which would reasonably impact alertness or behavior