Evaluation of the Effect of Individual and Group Tour on the Anxiety Scores of 4-7-year-old Hospitalized Children and their Mothers.

BACKGROUND: Anxiety is a human response to any unknown situation. Hospitalization and encountering an unfamiliar environment could lead to anxiety and its complications. Therefore, the aim of the present study was to evaluate the effect of individual and group tours on anxiety in children and their mothers. MATERIALS AND METHODS: This quasi-experimental study was conducted on the three groups of individual tour, group tour, and control in two stages. The study was performed on 84 children. The self-report image anxiety scale and State-Trait Anxiety Inventory (STAI) (Spielberger et al.) were used for the assessment of anxiety among children and their mothers, respectively. Data were analyzed using Statistical Package for the Social Sciences software. RESULTS: The results showed that the mean score of children's anxiety differed significantly between the three groups after the intervention (F = 40.58, p < 0.001). In addition, the three groups were significantly different in terms of the mothers' anxiety after the intervention (F = 4.12, p < 0.02). No significant difference was observed between the group tour and individual tour groups regarding the children's anxiety score (F = 0.02, p = 0.980) and mothers' state anxiety scores (F = 0.054, p = 0.950). CONCLUSIONS: The hospital visiting tours decreased the hospitalized children's anxiety and their mother's anxiety. This might be due to their greater familiarity with the ward's nurses, hospital environment, and facilities, familiarization with the unfamiliar new places and the location of different places, and speaking to and finding a sense of empathy and sympathy with their peers.

The Impact of an Educational Program Regarding Total Parenteral Nutrition on Infection Indicators in Neonates Admitted to the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit.

BACKGROUND: One of the basic care measures for preterm infants is providing nutrition through total parenteral nutrition (TPN) and one of the most important complications of it is infection. Because prevention of nosocomial infections is an important issue for neonate's safety, this study aimed to determine the effects of a continuing medical education (CME) course on TPN for neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) nurses on indicators of infection in newborns. MATERIALS AND METHODS: This quasi-experimental study was conducted on 127 neonates who fulfilled the inclusion criteria. They were selected through simple convenience sampling method at two stages of before and after the CME program. The inclusion criteria were prescription of TPN by the physician and lack of clinical evidences for infection in newborns before the beginning of TPN. Death of the infant during each stage of the study was considered as the exclusion criteria. The data gathering tool was a data record sheet including clinical signs of infection in the infants and their demographic characteristics. Data were analyzed using Chi-square test, Fisher's exact test, and student's t-test in SPSS software. RESULTS: The results showed the frequency of clinical markers for infection in newborns at the pre-intervention stage (n = 41; 65.10%) was significantly less than at the post-intervention stage (n = 30; 46.90%) (p = 0.04). CONCLUSIONS: Nursing educational programs on TPN reduce infection rates among neonates in NICUs.

Investigating the effect of Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR) on postoperative pain intensity in adolescents undergoing surgery: a randomized controlled trial.

AIM: To investigate the efficacy of Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing for postoperative pain management in adolescents. BACKGROUND: Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing is an inexpensive, non-pharmacological intervention that has successfully been used to treat chronic pain. It holds promise in the treatment of acute, postsurgical pain based on its purported effects on the brain and nervous system. DESIGN: A randomized controlled trial was used. METHODS: Fifty-six adolescent surgical patients aged between 12-18 years were allocated to gender-balanced Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (treatment) or non-Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (control) groups. Pain was measured using the Wong-Baker FACES(®) Pain Rating Scale (WBFS) before and after the intervention (or non-intervention for the control group). FINDINGS: A Wilcoxon signed-rank test demonstrated that the Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing group experienced a significant reduction in pain intensity after treatment intervention, whereas the control group did not. Additionally, a Mann-Whitney U-test showed that, while there was no significant difference between the two groups at time 1, there was a significant difference in pain intensity between the two groups at time 2, with the Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing group experiencing lower levels of pain. CONCLUSION: These results suggest that Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing may be an effective treatment modality for postoperative pain.

Evaluation of the effect of aromatherapy with Rosa damascena Mill. on postoperative pain intensity in hospitalized children in selected hospitals affiliated to Isfahan University of Medical Sciences in 2013: A randomized clinical trial.

BACKGROUND: Pain is the common complication after a surgery. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of aromatherapy with Rosa damascena Mill. on the postoperative pain in children. MATERIALS AND METHODS: In a double-blind, placebo-controlled clinical trial, we selected 64 children of 3-6 years of age through convenient sampling and divided them randomly into two groups. Patients in group A were given inhalation aromatherapy with R. damascena Mill., and in group B, the patients were given almond oil as a placebo. Inhalation aromatherapy was used at the first time of subjects' arrival to the ward and then at 3, 6, 9, and 12 h afterward. Common palliative treatments to relieve pain were used in both groups. Thirty minutes after aromatherapy, the postoperative pain in children was evaluated with the Toddler Preschooler Postoperative Pain Scale (TPPPS). Data were statistically analyzed using Chi-square test, one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA), and repeated measures ANOVA. RESULTS: There was no significant difference in pain scores at the first time of subjects' arrival to the ward (before receiving any aromatherapy or palliative care) between the two groups. After each time of aromatherapy and at the end of treatment, the pain score was significantly reduced in the aromatherapy group with R. damascena Mill. compared to the placebo group. CONCLUSIONS: According to our results, aromatherapy with R. damascena Mill. can be used in postoperative pain in children, together with other common treatments without any significant side effects.