Touch-based treatments and infantile colic - Parental perceptions of treatment outcomes related to infants' crying and sleeping

PURPOSE: This study aimed to demonstrate whether touch-based treatments decreased crying and improved sleep among infants suffering infantile colic symptoms. Parent-reported outcomes related to infant crying and sleep were analyzed for two touch-based treatment groups (osteopathy and reflexology), and an affective touch group, receiving three treatments sessions each, compared with a conventional care group. DESIGN AND METHODS: A total of 177 infants diagnosed with colic enrolled, of whom 144 infants, 3-10 weeks old, participated in the study. Parents completed questionnaires before treatments, after the first session, one week after the third session, and three weeks following the third, final session. Primary outcomes were daily crying and sleep duration (in hours), reported for both the preceding 24 h and the preceding week. Mixed model regression analysis was used to compare outcome variations across groups. Secondary outcomes included parent-perceived effectiveness of the treatments on infant crying and sleep quality, measured using Likert scales. RESULTS: No statistically significant reductions in crying hours or increases in sleep hours were detected. However, parents perceived osteopathy and reflexology to be effective in reducing crying and improving sleep quality. All treatments were reported as safe, with no serious adverse events noted. CONCLUSIONS: The results rely on parental recall, limiting detection of treatment effects. The discrepancy between the non-significant reduction in IC symptoms and the high perceived effectiveness highlights the value of family-centered approaches. Future research should use more precise measures of infant crying and sleep (e.g., diaries, mobile applications, actigraphy) and apply mixed-methods to explore effectiveness. REGISTRATION: ISRCTN registry (ISRCTN15640779).