Effect of chewing gum on the management of chemotherapy-induced oral mucositis in children: Systematic review of experimental studies.

OBJECTIVE: It was aimed to systematically synthesise the available literature on examining the effect of chewing gum in the management/reduction of chemotherapy-induced oral mucositis in children. METHODS: The PRISMA was followed for the systematic review. All published studies obtained from the relevant databases were examined while the research question and inclusion and exclusion criteria were considered. The Joanna Briggs Institute (JBI) critical appraisal tools were used to evaluate the quality of the studies. RESULTS: A total of five studies met the inclusion criteria: three randomised controlled trials (RCT) and two quasi-experimental studies with a total of 461 paediatric oncology patients were included. Heterogeneity was found across all studies regarding the application of gum chewing and regarding the effectiveness of gum chewing. Two RTCs and one quasi-experimental study reported that gum chewing is not effective to reduce severe oral mucositis, but effective to reduce moderate and mild oral mucositis, and one RTC reported that gum chewing is not effective to reduce oral mucositis. CONCLUSION: Experimental studies particularly randomised controlled trials using rigorous designs, consistent outcome measures, and larger sample sizes are required to determine the efficacy of chewing gum in reducing chemotherapy-induced oral mucositis in paediatric oncology patients. Study was registered in PROSPERO and number was CRD42022328916.

[Reduction of pain during intravenous cannulation in children: Buzzy application]. / Çocuklarda damar yolu açma islemi sirasinda olusan agriyi azaltma: Buzzy uygulamasi.

OBJECTIVES: This study was a randomized, controlled examination of the effect of the Buzzy device (MMJ Labs, LLC, Atlanta, GA, USA) in reducing pain during peripheral intravenous cannulation in children. The device uses a combination of highfrequency vibration and cold to block pain. METHODS: The study was conducted with 56 children aged 7-12 years who presented at the pediatric emergency department of Trakya University Health Center for Medical Research and Practice. Data were gathered using a family and child data collection form and the Wong-Baker FACES Pain Rating Scale (Wong-Baker FACES Foundation, Oklahoma City, OK, USA). A vein visualization tool was used in both groups for peripheral intravenous cannulation, and the Buzzy device was also used in the experimental group. The pain of the children was assessed by a nurse and the children. Descriptive statistics, the Wilcoxon t-test, the Mann-Whitney U test, and correlation analysis were used to evaluate the data. The results were evaluated at a 95% confidence interval and p<0.05 was accepted as the level of significance. RESULTS: The mean age of the children was 8.37±1.96 years and 58.9% were male. The mean pain score provided by the children in the experimental group was 3.40±3.56 and it was 3.76±3.06 in the control group. The mean pain score reported by the nurse for the experimental group was 4.53±3.44 and 3.76±2.73 for the control group. There was no significant difference between the pain scores reported by the children and the nurse according to group (p<0.05). However, there was a significant difference between the pain scores recorded by the nurse and the children (p=0.034). CONCLUSION: The Buzzy device was not effective in reducing pain during intravenous cannulation. The level of pain reported by the nurse was higher than that described by the children. It is recommended that training on pain assessment and the use of distraction methods should be provided to nurses working in pediatric emergency departments.

Effect of disease management education on the quality of life and self-efficacy levels of children with asthma.

PURPOSE: The aim of this study was to determine the effects of disease management education provided to children with asthma on their quality of life and self-efficacy levels. METHODS AND DESIGN: The study design was a quasi-experimental design with The One Group Pretest-Posttest design. This study was conducted on 60 children with asthma between 10 and 18 years of age. Data were collected by "Information Form", "Pediatric Asthma Quality of Life Questionnaire", and "Self-Efficacy Scale for Children and Adolescents with Asthma". Children's quality of life and self-efficacy levels were assessed before receiving an individual asthma education intervention and then children were informed with an asthma management education book individually. Two months after the education intervention, the quality of life and self-efficacy levels of the children were re-evaluated. RESULTS: The children's quality of life and self-efficacy levels increased significantly after education (p = 0.014). Maternal age, number of siblings, number of family members living in the same house, activity status, the frequency of experiencing symptoms, and the ability to use the inhalers on their own affected children quality of life. Child's age, knowledge about factors causing asthma, and ability to use medication on their own affected their self-efficacy ( p < 0.05). PRACTICE IMPLICATIONS: According to these results, planned asthma education program and provided continuity of this education by nurses would be effective to improve the quality of life and levels of self-efficacy. Asthma management education for children with asthma by nurses after diagnosis is beneficial for improving the quality of life and levels of self-efficacy.