Exploring the interplay: Maternal electronic health literacy and its impact on early childhood development and parenting practices.

BACKGROUND: Mothers need a competent electronic health literacy (eHL) skill for beneficial gains for the health of their children in the virtual environment, which is a new health platform. We predict that a competent eHL of mothers who play a central role in early childhood will positively affect the health of their children. This study aimed to determine the level of eHL of mothers of young children and investigate the relationship between mothers' eHL and early childhood development (ECD) and early parenting practices (EPP). METHODS: This cross-sectional study was conducted on mothers with children aged 36-59 months using eHealth. Sociodemographic and personal characteristics form, Early Childhood Development Module and eHealth Literacy Scale were administered to the participating mothers. RESULTS: The data from 440 mother-child pairs were analysed. Children of mothers with sufficient eHL levels were more likely to be Early Childhood Development Index (ECDI)-on-track, adjusted odds ratio (AOR), 95% confidence interval (CI): 2.16 (1.29-3.61); have adequate support in learning, AOR (%95 CI): 3.23 (1.69-6.18); and have adequate daily meals and snacks, AOR (%95 CI): 2.43 (1.56-3.78). CONCLUSION: These results revealed that there is a need for interventions that will contribute to child health by improving mothers' eHL levels.

Relations of maternal health literacy and parenting practices with early childhood development: a cross-sectional study.

This study aimed to examine the relations of early childhood development with maternal health literacy and mothers' early parenting practices. This cross-sectional study was conducted on mothers with children aged 36-59 months (n = 503) with a survey form, Early Childhood Development Index (ECDI) and Turkish Health Literacy Scale-32. Children of mothers with sufficient/excellent health literacy levels, children who are breastfed for 12 months and longer, and children with a screen time of 2 h or less were more likely to be ECDI-on-track (AOR (CI) = 2.52 (1.53-4.15); 2.28 (1.41-3.70); 2.04 (1.18-3.50); respectively). In conclusion, children whose mothers were adequately health literate, who were breastfed longer and who had less screen time were better on ECDI indicators. Increasing the knowledge and skills of mothers on early parenting practices and supporting them to be good health literacy will contribute positively to the early development of children.

Neutrophil-lymphocyte ratio, red cell distribution width and mean platelet volume as practical markers in febrile seizure classification / Proporção entre linfócitos e neutrófilos, amplitude de distribuição de hemácias e volume médio de plaquetas como marcadores práticos na classificação de convulsões febris

ABSTRACT Objective: To examine the neutrophil-lymphocyte ratio, red cell distribution width and mean platelet volume in patients with febrile seizure and to determine their role in febrile seizure classification. Methods: This was a retrospective hospital-based study conducted among patients aged 5 to 72 months admitted with febrile seizure. Children who had febrile seizures due to upper respiratory tract infection were included in the study. The children were divided into two groups: simple febrile seizures and complex febrile seizures. Patients with a history of febrile status epilepticus, previous convulsions, use of antiepileptic or other chronic drugs, foci of infection other than the upper respiratory tract infection, abnormal biochemical parameters, and chronic mental or physical disease were excluded from the study. Clinical and laboratory findings of the patients were obtained from digital medical records. Results: The records of 112 febrile seizure patients were reviewed, and 89 were grouped as simple and 23 as complex febrile seizures. Although there was no statistically significant difference between the two groups in terms of the mean red cell distribution width values (p=0.703), neutrophil-lymphocyte ratio and mean platelet volume were significantly higher in patients with complex febrile seizures (p=0.034, p=0.037; respectively). Conclusions: This study showed that neutrophil-lymphocyte ratio and mean platelet volume could be practical and inexpensive clinical markers for febrile seizure classification. A similar result could not be reached for red cell distribution width in this study. These findings should be supported by multicenter studies with large samples.

RESUMO Objetivo: Examinar a relação linfócitos-neutrófilos, amplitude de distribuição de hemácias e volume médio de plaquetas em pacientes com convulsão febril, e determinar seu papel na classificação de convulsão febril. Métodos: Este foi um estudo retrospectivo de base hospitalar realizado com pacientes de 5 a 72 meses admitidos com convulsão febril. Crianças que tiveram convulsões febris em razão de infecção do trato respiratório superior foram incluídas no estudo. As crianças foram divididas em dois grupos: convulsões febris simples e complexas. Pacientes com história de Status epiléptico febril, convulsões prévias, uso de drogas antiepilépticas ou outras drogas crônicas, com focos de infecção que não a do trato respiratório superior, parâmetros bioquímicos anormais e doenças crônicas mentais ou físicas foram excluídos do estudo. Os achados clínicos e laboratoriais dos pacientes foram obtidos a partir dos prontuários médicos digitais. Resultados: Registros de 112 pacientes com convulsão febril foram revisados: 89 com convulsões febris simples e 23 com complexas. Embora não tenha havido diferença estatisticamente significativa entre os dois grupos em termos de valor médio de amplitude de distribuição de hemácias (p=0,703), a relação linfócitos-neutrófilos e o volume médio de plaquetas foram significativamente mais elevados em pacientes com convulsões febris simples (p=0,034, p=0,037; respectivamente). Conclusões: Este estudo mostrou que a relação linfócitos-neutrófilos e o volume médio de plaquetas podem ser marcadores clínicos práticos e de baixo custo para a classificação de convulsão febril. Um resultado semelhante não pôde ser alcançado para a amplitude de distribuição de hemácias neste estudo. Esses achados devem ser apoiados por estudos multicêntricos com grandes amostras.

Neutrophil-lymphocyte ratio, red cell distribution width and mean platelet volume as practical markers in febrile seizure classification.

OBJECTIVE: To examine the neutrophil-lymphocyte ratio, red cell distribution width and mean platelet volume in patients with febrile seizure and to determine their role in febrile seizure classification. METHODS: This was a retrospective hospital-based study conducted among patients aged 5 to 72 months admitted with febrile seizure. Children who had febrile seizures due to upper respiratory tract infection were included in the study. The children were divided into two groups: simple febrile seizures and complex febrile seizures. Patients with a history of febrile status epilepticus, previous convulsions, use of antiepileptic or other chronic drugs, foci of infection other than the upper respiratory tract infection, abnormal biochemical parameters, and chronic mental or physical disease were excluded from the study. Clinical and laboratory findings of the patients were obtained from digital medical records. RESULTS: The records of 112 febrile seizure patients were reviewed, and 89 were grouped as simple and 23 as complex febrile seizures. Although there was no statistically significant difference between the two groups in terms of the mean red cell distribution width values (p=0.703), neutrophil-lymphocyte ratio and mean platelet volume were significantly higher in patients with complex febrile seizures (p=0.034, p=0.037; respectively). CONCLUSIONS: This study showed that neutrophil-lymphocyte ratio and mean platelet volume could be practical and inexpensive clinical markers for febrile seizure classification. A similar result could not be reached for red cell distribution width in this study. These findings should be supported by multicenter studies with large samples.

Timely initiation of breastfeeding and its associated factors among Turkish mothers: a mixed model research.

Exploring the determinants of timely initiation of breastfeeding is necessary for planning efficient breastfeeding promotion programmes. The present study aimed to investigate the frequency and related factors of timely initiation of breastfeeding among Turkish mothers. This study was a cross-sectional, descriptive, mixed model study, which was carried out on mothers with healthy children up to 3 years old who presented to the paediatric clinic between 01 November 2019 and 30 December 2019 in a university hospital. Of the 307 participant mothers, the mean age was 28.3 ± 3.9 years. The frequency of timely initiation of breastfeeding was 70.7%. Significant associations were found between timely initiation of breastfeeding status and residence, type of delivery, type of anaesthesia, birth weight of babies, counselling on timely initiation of breastfeeding during antenatal care and consultant medical staff. In order to increase the breastfeeding rate in the first hour, spontaneous vaginal delivery should be supported and spinal/epidural anaesthesia method should be preferred in cases where caesarean delivery is indicated. Other important steps to increase the ratio of timely initiation of breastfeeding are strengthening breastfeeding counselling services and the midwifery system.

Characteristics of picky eater children in Turkey: a cross-sectional study.

OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study is to investigate the relations of picky eating habit of children with their nutrition, physical activity, screen time and sleep habits in the context of parental picky eating habit. METHODS: In a cross-sectional study a questionnare was applied to the parents of children aged 6-13 years in two provincies. The cases were analyzed as the overall group and the two subgroups in which both parents are not picky eater, and in which at least one parent was picky eater. Child's risk of being picky eater was analyzed by logistic regression. RESULTS: A total of 913 children and parent pairs were included in the study. The risk of picky eating of the child increases 2.85 (AOR: 1.67-4.88) times when only the mother was picky eater, 5.99 (AOR: 3.32-7.52) times when only the father was picky eater, and 22.79 (AOR: 6.95-74.71) times when both of the parents were picky eaters. In the subgroup in which at least one parent was picky eater, it was determined that children with physical activity duration of ≥ 1 h/day and sleep time of ≥ 9 h /day were less likely to be picky eater and the children with screen time of ≥ 2 h/day were more likely to be picky eaters. CONCLUSION: Picky eating habit in childhood is related to the picky eating habit of the parents. In the context of this relationship, the picky eating habit of children is related to sleep, physical activity, screen time and other eating habits.

COVID-19 Disease in Presenting to the Pediatric Emergency Department: A Multicenter Study of 8886 Cases.

BACKGROUND: The aim was to evaluate the epidemiological, clinical, laboratory, and radiologic data of children with SARS-CoV-2 positivity by polymerase chain reaction (PCR) together with treatment strategies and clinical outcomes and to evaluate cases of multisystem inflammatory syndrome in children (MIS-C) in this population. METHODS: This was a multicenter retrospective observational cohort study performed in the pediatric emergency departments of 19 tertiary hospitals. From March 11, 2020, to May 31, 2021, children who were diagnosed with confirmed nasopharyngeal/tracheal specimen SARS-CoV-2 PCR positivity or positivity for serum-specific antibodies against SARS-CoV-2 were included. Demographics, presence of chronic illness, symptoms, history of contact with SARS-CoV-2 PCR-positive individuals, laboratory and radiologic investigations, clinical severity, hospital admissions, and prognosis were recorded. RESULTS: A total of 8886 cases were included. While 8799 (99.0%) cases resulted in a diagnosis of SARS-CoV-2 with PCR positivity, 87 (1.0%) patients were diagnosed with MIS-C. Among SARS-CoV-2 PCR-positive patients, 51.0% were male and 8.5% had chronic illnesses. The median age was 11.6 years (IQR: 5.0-15.4) and 737 (8.4%) patients were aged <1 year. Of the patients, 15.5% were asymptomatic. The most common symptoms were fever (48.5%) and cough (30.7%) for all age groups. There was a decrease in the rate of fever as age increased (p < 0.001); the most common age group for this symptom was <1 year with the rate of 69.6%. There was known contact with a SARS-CoV-2 PCR-positive individual in 67.3% of the cases, with household contacts in 71.3% of those cases. In terms of clinical severity, 83 (0.9%) patients were in the severe-critical group. There was hospital admission in 1269 (14.4%) cases, with 106 (1.2%) of those patients being admitted to the pediatric intensive care unit (PICU). Among patients with MIS-C, 60.9% were male and the median age was 6.4 years (IQR: 3.9-10.4). Twelve (13.7%) patients presented with shock. There was hospital admission in 89.7% of these cases, with 29.9% of the patients with MIS-C being admitted to the PICU. CONCLUSION: Most SARS-CoV-2 PCR-positive patients presented with a mild clinical course. Although rare, MIS-C emerges as a serious consequence with frequent PICU admission. Further understanding of the characteristics of COVID-19 disease could provide insights and guide the development of therapeutic strategies for target groups.

Video game playing among preschoolers: prevalence and home environment in three provinces from Turkey.

We aimed to investigate the video game habits and their relationship with home environment in children 2-5 years in Turkey. A structured questionnaire about the child's demographic, screen, and video gaming characteristics was completed by parents in five health centers from three provinces. One-quarter of 1245 preschoolers were found to play video games. The prevalence of playing video games was higher in older age, male gender, low parental education, families with 3 or more children, having a game console, computers and tablets at home, child's screen time of more than 2 hours per day, child's non-compliance with the parental screen rules, and presence of someone else playing videogame at home. Of the parents, 54.5% did not know the name of the video game the child was playing. Parents should be counseled about supervising on their children's video game playing habits and selection of well-designed games with the right content.

Evaluation of problematic screen exposure in pre-schoolers using a unique tool called "seven-in-seven screen exposure questionnaire": cross-sectional study.

BACKGROUND: Screen media exposure has been increasing in the preschool years. Risky aspects of screen exposure have many potential negative effects on children's health. We aimed to evaluate problematic screen exposure in Turkish preschool children by using a unique tool called the "Seven-in-Seven Screen Exposure Questionnaire" and to investigate factors associated with problematic screen exposure. METHODS: A questionnaire form was designed including general descriptive questions in the first part. In the second part, a questionnaire we designed called the "Seven-in-Seven Screen Exposure Questionnaire" was conducted to evaluate problematic screen exposure characteristics. The questionnaire included seven items: daily screen time, viewing with parent(s), setting screen limits, screen exposure during meals and in the hour before bedtime, age of onset of screen exposure, and viewing low-quality content. The total problematic screen exposure score (range 0-13) was generated by summing scores from the seven items. Total scores are classified into two categories: low (< 7) and high (≥ 7). Logistic regression was performed to search for independent parameters associated with problematic screen exposure. RESULTS: One thousand two hundred forty-five mother-child pairs participated in this study. The median age of the children was 3.9 (IQR: 2.9-4.7) years and 51% were males. Overall, 280 children (22.5%) had a problematic screen exposure score of ≥7 (high). The median problematic screen exposure score was 4 (IQR: 3-6). Maternal age of < 30 years; paternal age of ≥30 years; maternal educational level of ≤12 years; the age of 24-48 months; home-based daycare; postponing eating, toileting, or sleeping while using a screen; and using touchscreen devices were found to be associated with an increased risk of having a high problematic screen exposure score. CONCLUSION: Developing national scales to monitor problematic screen use in children would be more effective than monitoring screen time alone. All of the screen use characteristics not recommended in children would be evaluated using problematic screen exposure scales. The "Seven-in-Seven Screen Exposure Questionnaire" may serve as an example for further studies.

Evaluation of video game playing status in school-age children with various variables.

OBJECTIVE: Excessive video game playing has several health implications on children. In this study, we evaluate the factors related to video game use in school-aged children. MATERIAL AND METHODS: This cross-sectional descriptive study included 160 children aged 6-8 years who applied to outpatient clinics at the Department of Pediatrics at Baskent University Hospital. Each parent completed a structured questionnaire including demographic information, video game use, average daily screen time, and parental habits and concerns about their children's screen use. RESULTS: The mean age of first video game use was (mean±SD) 2.8±1.1 years. The minimum age for playing video games was 1 year. Male children spent more time playing video games. Both parental age and maternal education level were higher in the group of video gamers compared with non-gamers (p<0.05). Average time spent playing video games was 2.7±1.6 hours/day. The group of video gamers had a considerably younger age for starting watching television and higher rates for other video gamers at home than non-gamers (p=0.036 and p<0001, respectively). The group of video gamers had significantly higher rates for having a computer, tablet, and game console at home compared with non-gamers (p<0.05). CONCLUSIONS: Our study indicates a statistically significant relationship between the age of starting watching television, gender of child, parent's age, maternal education, and the categories of video gaming habits. Developing strategies toward avoiding early screen exposure in children should be taken into consideration, because it is directly related to video gaming habits in children.

Associations between parenting styles and excessive screen usage in preschool children.

OBJECTIVE: Young children and preschoolers are now growing up in settings filled with a variety of technological devices. Despite the recommendation that parents should limit screen time, many preschoolers are exposed to screens at very early ages and for a long time. This study aimed to investigate the associations between parenting styles and the excessive screen time of preschool-aged children. MATERIAL AND METHODS: This cross-sectional descriptive study included preschool children with low screen exposure (<1 hour; n=176) and excessive screen exposure (>4 hours; n=74). A self-completion-structured survey form and Parent Attitude Scale were filled by the mothers. RESULTS: More than half (52.0%) of them were male children. Increased number of children, increased household sizes, mothers being unemployed, birth order ≥2, and home-based care were found to be statistically significantly higher in the excessive screen exposure group than in the low screen exposure group. Mothers and fathers in the excessive screen exposure group had lower educational levels compared with their counterparts in the low screen exposure group (p<0.001). Multivariate logistic regression analyses showed that mothers' high authoritative (democratic) scores were associated with low screen exposure(adjusted odds ratio (AOR): 0.3; 95% confidence interval (CI): 0.1-0.9). High overprotective and permissive parenting subscale scores were related to excessive screen exposure after adjusting potential confounders (AOR: 2.8, 95% CI: 1.1-6.7; AOR: 4.5, 95% CI: 1.8-11.6). CONCLUSION: Excessive screening time may indicate a problematic parent-child relationship. Establishing a positive parent-child relationship can be an effective way of managing screen time in preschool children.

Comparison of screen time and digital gaming habits of Turkish children before and during the coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic.

OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study is to compare the screen time and digital gaming habits of Turkish children before and during the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. MATERIAL AND METHODS: This cross-sectional descriptive study was carried out in a university hospital between May 7, 2020 and June 27, 2020. Healthy children aged 3-10 years who applied to the pediatrics clinics for outpatient care were included in the study. A structured survey was applied to the parents who agreed to participate. RESULTS: A total of 253 children were included in the study. It was found that the ratio of children with screen time of ≥1 hour during the pandemic was significantly higher than before the pandemic (p<0.001). It was determined that the ratio of children watching both adult and children's programs increased during the pandemic (p<0.001). The ratio of children playing digital games during the pandemic was also found to be increased significantly compared with that before the pandemic (p<0.001). CONCLUSION: This study demonstrated that screen and digital gaming time increased independently of sociodemographic characteristics during the COVID-19 pandemic compared with before the pandemic.

El uso excesivo de pantallas está asociado con labilidad emocional en niños preescolares / Excessive screen time is associated with emotional lability in preschool children

Introducción. En estudios anteriores, el uso excesivo o la exposición temprana a pantallas se asoció con atención deficiente, falta de control de la conducta, retraso del lenguaje y déficit en la función ejecutiva. El objetivo de este estudio fue investigar la relación entre el tiempo de uso de pantallas y la regulación emocional, que afecta las relaciones sociales de los niños de 2 a 5 años.Población y métodos. Estudio descriptivo transversal en un hospital universitario del 1.º de enero al 1.º de marzo de 2018. Se incluyó a madres de niños sanos de 2 a 5 años con un uso de pantallas inferior a 1 hora o superior a 4 horas. A quienes aceptaron participar se les administró una encuesta estructurada y la Emotion Regulation Checklist para padres.Resultados. De los 240 niños participantes, 98 (el 40,8 %) tenían un uso de pantallas ≥ 4 horas. Ser cuidado por la madre, tener 12 meses o más durante la primera exposición y no estar acompañado por los padres al usarlas se asociaron con ≥ 4 horas de uso de pantallas (p = 0,002; p = 0,002; p = 0,012, respectivamente). La proporción de participantes con una puntuación alta de labilidad/negatividad (L/N) fue significativamente mayor entre los niños con ≥ 4 horas de uso de pantallas y que no estaban acompañados por sus padres al usarlas (p = 0,004; p = 0,033, respectivamente).Conclusiones. Este estudio determinó que un uso excesivo de pantallas se asocia con labilidad emocional durante esta etapa temprana de la infancia.

Introduction. Previous studies have found that excessive screen time or early screen exposure is associated with poor attention, lack of behavioral control, delayed language and deficit in executive functions. The aim of this study was to investigate the relationship between screen time and emotion regulation skills, which is one of the important life components affecting the social relations of children aged 2 to 5 years.Population and methods.This cross-sectional descriptive study was carried out in a university hospital between January 1, 2018 and March 1, 2018. Mothers of healthy children aged 2-5 years with a daily screen time of less than 1 hour or over 4 hours were included in the study. A structured survey and the Emotion Regulation Checklist for parents were applied to the mothers who agreed to participate.Results. Of 240 children participating in the study, 98 (40.8 %) had ≥4 hours of screen time. Caring by mother, age at first screen exposure 12 months and older, not co-viewing with parents were found to be associated with ≥ 4 hours of screen time (p = 0.002, p = 0.002, p = 0.012, respectively). The ratio of participants with high-lability/negativity (L/N) score was significantly higher in children with screen time of ≥ 4 hours and not co-viewing with parents (p = 0.004, p = 0.033, respectively).Conclusions. This study investigating the relationship between the emotion regulation skill and screen time revealed that excessive screen time is associated with emotional lability in this early childhood period.

Excessive screen time is associated with emotional lability in preschool children. / El uso excesivo de pantallas está asociado con labilidad emocional en niños preescolares.

INTRODUCTION: Previous studies have found that excessive screen time or early screen exposure is associated with poor attention, lack of behavioral control, delayed language and deficit in executive functions. The aim of this study was to investigate the relationship between screen time and emotion regulation skills, which is one of the important life components affecting the social relations of children aged 2 to 5 years. POPULATION AND METHODS: This cross-sectional descriptive study was carried out in a university hospital between January 1, 2018 and March 1, 2018. Mothers of healthy children aged 2-5 years with a daily screen time of less than 1 hour or over 4 hours were included in the study. A structured survey and the Emotion Regulation Checklist for parents were applied to the mothers who agreed to participate. RESULTS: Of 240 children participating in the study, 98 (40.8 %) had ≥4 hours of screen time. Caring by mother, age at first screen exposure 12 months and older, not co-viewing with parents were found to be associated with ≥ 4 hours of screen time (p = 0.002, p = 0.002, p = 0.012, respectively). The ratio of participants with highlability/ negativity (L/N) score was significantly higher in children with screen time of ≥ 4 hours and not co-viewing with parents (p = 0.004, p = 0.033, respectively). CONCLUSIONS: This study investigating the relationship between the emotion regulation skill and screen time revealed that excessive screen time is associated with emotional lability in this early childhood period.

Introducción. En estudios anteriores, el uso excesivo o la exposición temprana a pantallas se asoció con atención deficiente, falta de control de la conducta, retraso del lenguaje y déficit en la función ejecutiva. El objetivo de este estudio fue investigar la relación entre el tiempo de uso de pantallas y la regulación emocional, que afecta las relaciones sociales de los niños de 2 a 5 años. Población y métodos. Estudio descriptivo transversal en un hospital universitario del 1.º de enero al 1.º de marzo de 2018. Se incluyó a madres de niños sanos de 2 a 5 años con un uso de pantallas inferior a 1 hora o superior a 4 horas. A quienes aceptaron participar se les administró una encuesta estructurada y la Emotion Regulation Checklist para padres. Resultados. De los 240 niños participantes, 98 (el 40,8 %) tenían un uso de pantallas ≥ 4 horas. Ser cuidado por la madre, tener 12 meses o más durante la primera exposición y no estar acompañado por los padres al usarlas se asociaron con ≥ 4 horas de uso de pantallas (p = 0,002; p = 0,002; p = 0,012, respectivamente). La proporción de participantes con una puntuación alta de labilidad/negatividad (L/N) fue significativamente mayor entre los niños con ≥ 4 horas de uso de pantallas y que no estaban acompañados por sus padres al usarlas (p = 0,004; p = 0,033, respectivamente). Conclusiones. Este estudio determinó que un uso excesivo de pantallas se asocia con labilidad emocional durante esta etapa temprana de la infancia.

A rare complication of lightning strike: Pulmonary contusion.

Lightning strike is a devastating disaster, leading to various life-threating complications and even death. In lightning striking victims, high-voltage electric current can destroy many tissues and organs through various mechanisms. One of these mechanisms is the blunt trauma that injures the organs by creating a blast effect. Although not frequent, blunt trauma may result in various solid organ injuries such as pulmonary contusion. In this article, we reported a 15-year-old male patient who was admitted to the emergency department because of lightning strike in open terrain. Although he was conscious and vital signs were normal at presentation, respiratory distress developed on the 4th day. Unilateral pulmonary contusion was detected on the computerized tomography of the thorax. The patient was treated with supportive oxygen and intravenous hydration therapy. His respiratory distress improved on the 6th day and control posteroanterior chest radiograph revealed that pulmonary hemorrhage was spontaneously resorbed. On the 9th day, he was discharged with normal respiratory findings. The patient did not have any complaints during the 3-month follow-up after discharge.

Life quality and empathy in children with celiac disease.

OBJECTIVE: This study aims to investigate the associations between celiac disease (CD) and children's life quality and empathy level. METHODS: In this study, all participants aged 8-14 years completed the Turkish version of the Pediatric Quality of Life Inventory and Index of Empathy for Children and Adolescents. Parents were also applied to the structured survey. RESULTS: This study included a study group consisting of 45 children with celiac disease and a control group with 48 healthy children. The total scores of PedsQL were significantly lower for children with celiac disease when compared to the control group (p<0.05). When the sub-scores of PedsQL were evaluated, scores except the school functioning score (ScFS) were significantly lower in the study group (p<0.05). When IECA was analyzed, total empathy scale scores (TESS) were measured significantly higher in the study group (p<0.05). CONCLUSION: This study supports the argument that the quality of life decreases in children with CD. Future studies should aim to develop support models to improve the life quality of celiac patients. To our knowledge, this is the first study proving the increased empathy levels of children with CD. The determinants of the increased empathy levels should be focussed on future studies.

Complementary and alternative medicine experiences of mothers in the treatment of infantile colic.

Lack of effective medical treatment in infantile colic (IC) causes desperate mothers to apply for complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) treatments. Due to the possibility of benefits, the risks that may be incurred by these methods are often ignored by the parents. Therefore, information on the use of CAM methods in IC is needed. The aim of this study is to reveal the CAM experiences of mothers in IC treatment and the demographic characteristics that affect them. Mothers whose children were diagnosed as IC by a physician in the past were included in the study. The sociodemographic characteristics of the mothers, IC-diagnosed baby characteristics and CAM experiences were investigated face to face with a structured questionnaire. Sixty-six of 96 mothers who participated in the study used the CAM method. There was a statistically significant difference between the use of CAM and the education level of mothers (p < 0.05). We determined that 74% of mothers informed their doctors before starting treatments, and 82% do not believe if the CAM method could cause any harm that they would not notice by observing. The results showed that CAM methods are commonly used in IC treatment. According to these findings, mothers who use these methods believe that they are always harmless and have no side effects. For this reason, physicians should be careful about the adverse effects that may occur due to the CAM methods, which are widely used.

Excessive screen time is associated with maternal rejection behaviours in pre-school children.

AIM: Early childhood screen exposure leads to multiple adverse health events and parents have a major influence on their children's screen time. Our aim was to determine the association between maternal acceptance-rejection/control behaviours and excessive screen exposure in pre-school children. METHODS: In this cross-sectional descriptive study, children aged 2-5 years who had daily screen time <1 h (n = 76) and >4 h (n = 62) were enrolled. A structured survey form and Parental Acceptance-Rejection/Control Questionnaire were completed by mothers. RESULTS: Total rejection scores were found to be lower in those with screen time <1 h than cases with >4 h (82.7 ± 13.2, 89.3 ± 17.2; P = 0.015). In addition, higher hostility, neglect and reverse-affection scores were detected in excessive screen-exposed group (P = 0.033, P = 0.003, P = 0.047, respectively). Multivariate logistic regression analyses revealed that mothers' low acceptance of their children and high neglect score were associated with excessive screen exposure after adjusting possible confounding factors. The undifferentiated rejection and control behaviours of the mothers had no association with excessive screen exposure. CONCLUSION: Children with excessive screen time may have a problematic relationship with their mothers. The relationship between parent and child should be examined and corrective actions should be taken.

Weaning Practices of Turkish Mothers: A Mixed-Model Research.

Objectives: The aim of this study is to determine the weaning practices of mothers who have children between the ages of 2 and 5 years. Materials and Methods: This study was designed as a cross-sectional descriptive study, which was carried out between September 1, 2019 and October 1, 2019 in a pediatric clinic of a university hospital. For a better understanding, the traditional approaches, qualitative, and quantitative data were collected concurrently and analyzed together using Creswell's concurrent transformative mixed-model research design. Results: Of the 114 participants, the overall mean age was 29.2 ± 4.5 years. The mean breastfeeding duration was 15.3 ± 8.2 months. Sixty five (57.0%) of participants terminated breastfeeding themselves and 55 (85.9%) of them used traditional methods for weaning their children. The traditional methods used for termination of breastfeeding were staining the nipples to make baby startle (16.4%), applying nipples with a bad taste or smell to make baby disgust (40.0%), covering the nipples with various materials (18.2%), using a pacifier or feeding bottle (20.0%), and separation from mother (5.5%). Conclusions: In this study, it was found that most of the Turkish mothers use improper traditional methods for weaning. This study also demonstrated the urgent need to plan effective counseling services to implement natural weaning rather than traditional methods that are unsuitable for weaning.

Uso de videojuegos en alumnos de la escuela secundaria y factores asociados / Video game use among secondary school students and associated factors

Introducción: el avance de la tecnología e internet aumentaron la frecuencia con que los niños utilizan videojuegos. El objetivo fue determinar la frecuencia y patrones de uso y la adicción a videojuegos (AVJ) en alumnos de secundaria y la relación con factores sociodemográficos, familiares e individuales. Población y métodos: estudio descriptivo transversal en cuatro escuelas secundarias. Se realizó un cuestionario estructurado a los padres y la "Videogame Addiction Scale for Children (VASC)" a los alumnos jugadores de videojuegos. Resultados: se incluyó a 297 alumnos; 245 (82,5 %) jugaban a videojuegos. La tasa total de AVJ fue 1,6 % en toda la muestra. La tasa de AVJ fue 3,1 % entre los varones. La media geométrica para VASC (MG-VASC) fue mayor en varones y alumnos obesos (p < 0,001, p = 0,022, respectivamente). Los alumnos que utilizan redes sociales tuvieron puntajes más altos (p = 0,034). Las consolas, los juegos en línea y multijugador aumentan los puntajes de la MG-VASC (p = 0,028, p = 0,002, p = 0,016, respectivamente). Los juegos de guerra y estrategia tenían MG-VASC más elevadas (p < 0,001, p = 0,034, respectivamente). Los juegos de ingenio y casuales se relacionaron con puntajes menores (p = 0,006, p = 0,004, respectivamente).Conclusiones. Ser varón, ser obeso, usar redes sociales, tener consola, jugar a géneros específicos (guerra o estrategia), y los juegos en línea y multijugador están relacionados a mayores puntajes de la VASC en alumnos de secundaria. Los estudios prospectivos y las medidas preventivas deberían centrarse en esto.

Introduction: The rapid progress of technology and widespread use of internet has increased thefrequency of video gaming among children. The objective was to determine the frequency and patterns of video game use and video game addiction (VGA) in secondary school students and the relationship with socio-demographic, familial and individual factors. Population and methods: This cross-sectional descriptive study was conducted in four secondary schools in varied sociodemographic characteristics. A structured questionnaire was applied to the parents who agreed to participate. 'Videogame Addiction Scale for Children (VASC)' was performed to the video-gamer students. Results: 297 healthy students were included; 245 (82.5 %) reported as video game players. The rate of VGA was 1.6 % in our whole sample. The VGA rate was 3.1 % within the male students. VASC-Geometric Mean Score (VASC-GMS) was significantly higher in male and obese children (p < 0.001, p= 0.022, respectively). Students who use socialmedia also had higher scores (p= 0.034). Gaming consoles, online games or games with multiplayers increase the VASC-GMS scores (p= 0.028, p= 0.002, p= 0.016, respectively). War and strategy games lead higher VASC-GMS (p < 0.001, p= 0.034, respectively). In contrast, mind and casual games were related to lower VASC-GMS (p= 0.006, p= 0.004, respectively).Conclusions. It was observed that being male, being obese, use of social media, game console ownership, playing specific game genres (war or strategy games), online and multiplayer games are related to higher scores of video game addiction scale in secondary school students. Future prospective studies and preventive measures on VGA should focus on these factors.