Developing and evaluating the feasibility of the Mobile Intervention for Breastfeeding counseling in maternity care

Despite the strong evidence of breastfeeding benefits for mothers’ and newborns’ nutrition and health, breastfeeding is not practiced according to current recommendations. Digital solutions such as the mobile applications have produced promising results to promote successful breastfeeding in maternity care. This study aimed to develop and evaluate the feasibility of a Mobile Intervention for Breastfeeding counseling (MIBFc) by collecting information on the usability, utility, and recommendations of the solution from mothers. The MIBFc was based on World Health Organization recommendations for breastfeeding. This study was a cross-sectional descriptive design that used an electronic survey to collect data from sample of 39 Finnish mothers in 2018 (n=13, Group 1) and 2019–2020 (n=26, Group 2). The data were analysed using descriptive statistical analysis, while qualitative responses were grouped into themes based on their similarities of the content. The results showed that most of the mothers (over 92%) felt that the mobile intervention was easy to use and 88% of the mothers felt that the mobile intervention’s content was adequate. Mothers’ experiences with the utility of the mobile intervention were relevant, that is, they felt that the mobile intervention supported their oral guidance (89%) and helped to breastfeed for up successfully exclusively to six months (n=7, 41%). Most of the mothers used the mobile intervention primarily during pregnancy. The mothers were satisfied with the intervention’s layout, and they recommended it to other mothers in same situation, although there were some technical problems with links. This study indicated that the feasibility of the MIBFc, including usability and utility was good, based on the mothers’ overall evaluation. Using the mobile intervention can increase mothers’ knowledge of breastfeeding and support for lactation. The study highlights a need for future evaluations of the effectiveness of MIBFc in large populations

Imikute protseduurivalu hindamine ja mittefarmakoloogiline valutustamine Eesti haiglates – õdede vaatekoht

Eesti Arst 2023; 102(1):4

Parental Experiences of the Pediatric Day Surgery Pathway and the Needs for a Digital Gaming Solution : Qualitative Study

Background: The parents of hospitalized children are often dissatisfied with waiting times, fasting, discharge criteria, postoperative pain relief, and postoperative guidance. Parents' experiences help care providers to provide effective, family-centered care that responds to parents' needs throughout the day surgery pathway. Objective: The objective of our study was to describe parental experiences of the pediatric day surgery pathway and the needs for a digital gaming solution in order to facilitate the digitalization of these pathways. Methods: This was a descriptive qualitative study. The participants (N=31) were parents whose children were admitted to the hospital for the day surgical treatments or magnetic resonance imaging. The data were collected through an unstructured, open-ended questionnaire; an inductive content analysis was conducted to analyze the qualitative data. Reporting of the study findings adheres to the Consolidated Criteria for Reporting Qualitative Research (COREQ) checklist. Results: Parental experiences of the children's day surgery pathway included 3 main categories: (1) needs for parental guidance, (2) needs for support, and (3) child involved in his or her own pathway (eg, consideration of an individual child and preparation of child for treatment). The needs for a digital gaming solution were identified as 1 main category-the digital gaming solution for children and families to support care. This main category included 3 upper categories: (1) preparing children and families for the day surgery via the solution, (2) gamification in the solution, and (3) connecting people through the solution. Conclusions: Parents need guidance and support for their children's day surgery care pathways. A digital gaming solution may be a relevant tool to support communication and to provide information on day surgeries Families are ready for and are open to digital gaming solutions that provide support and guidance and engage children in the day surgery pathways.Peer reviewe

A gamified mobile health intervention for children in day surgery care : Protocol for a randomized controlled trial

Publisher Copyright: © 2021 The Authors. Nursing Open published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.Aims: To describe a study protocol for a randomized controlled trial which will evaluate the effectiveness of a gamified mobile health intervention for children in whole day surgery care. Design: A study protocol for a two-arm randomized controlled trial. Methods: Participants will be randomly assigned to the intervention group (N = 62), in which patients receive routine care and play a mobile game designed for children or the control group (N = 62), in which patients receive routine care, including a mobile phone application that supports parents during the care path. The primary outcome is children's pre-operative anxiety, while the secondary outcome measures included fear and postoperative pain, along with parental satisfaction and anxiety. Data collection started in August 2020. Results: The results of the ongoing randomized controlled trial will determine whether the developed gamified mobile health intervention can be recommended for hospital use, and whether it could be used to educate children about their surgical treatment to decrease anxiety.Peer reviewe

The role of parental circadian preference in the onset of sleep difficulties in early childhood

Background: Chronotype is a construct contributing to individual differences in sleep-wake timing. Previous studies with children have found that evening-types exhibit greater sleep difficulties. Infant sleep quality can be modulated by several factors, such as parental characteristics. We examined the association between parental circadian preference and sleep in early childhood. Methods: This study was based on a longitudinal birth cohort, with several measurement points. We used information regarding parental questionnaires during pregnancy and children's sleep measures at three, eight, 18 and 24 months. In total, 1220 mothers, 1116 fathers, 993 infants at three months, 990 infants at eight months, 958 children at 18 months, and 777 children at 24 months were analyzed. Parental circadian preference was measured using the Horne-Ostberg Morningness-Eveningness Questionnaire. Concerning children's sleep, we used the Brief Infant Sleep Questionnaire (BISQ) and the Infant Sleep Questionnaire (ISQ) at each time point. Results: Maternal circadian preference was associated with infants' circadian rhythm development at three, eight, 18 and 24 months. Furthermore, increased maternal eveningness was also related to short sleep during daytime at three months, and nighttime at three and eight months, to long sleep-onset latency at three, 18 and 24 months, to late bedtime at three, eight and 18 months, and to sleep difficulties at eight and 24 months. Paternal circadian preference was not associated with any sleep variable at any time point. Conclusion: Maternal circadian preference is related to several sleep difficulties in early childhood, and it may be considered a potential risk factor for the onset of early sleeping problems. (c) 2018 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.Peer reviewe

Development of sleep–wake rhythms during the first year of age

First published: 08 September 201

Maternal stress or sleep during pregnancy are not reflected on telomere length of newborns

Telomeres play an important role in maintaining chromosomal integrity.With each cell division, telomeres are shortened and leukocyte telomere length (LTL) has therefore been considered a marker for biological age. LTL is associated with various lifetime stressors and health‑related outcomes. Transgenerationaleffects have been implicated in newborns, with maternal stress, depression,and anxiety predicting shorter telomere length at birth, possibly reflecting the intrauterine growth environment. Previous studies, with relatively small sample sizes, have reported an effect of maternal stress, BMI, and depression during pregnancy on the LTL of newborns. Here, we attempted to replicate previous findings on prenatal stress and newborn LTL in a sample of 1405 infants using aqPCR‑based method.In addition, previous research has been expanded by studying the relationship between maternal sleep quality and LTL. Maternal prenatal stress, anxiety, depression, BMI, and self‑reported sleep quality were evaluated with self‑reported questionnaires.Despite sufficient power to detect similar or even considerably smaller effects than those previously reported in the literature,we were unable to replicate the previous correlation between maternal stress, anxiety, depression,or sleep with LTL. We discuss several possible reasons for the discrepancies between our findings and those previously described.Peer reviewe

Variation near MTNR1A associates with early development and interacts with seasons

First published: 07 October 201