Review: some behavioural interventions, drugs, and dietary changes reduce infantile colic
Question What is the effectiveness of diets, drug treatment, and behavioural interventions for infantile colic?
Data sources
Studies were identified by searching Medline (1966–96), EMBASE/Excerpta Medica (1986–95), and the Cochrane Controlled Trials Register with the terms colic and crying. Bibliographies of relevant studies were scanned.
Study selection
Published studies on the treatment of infantile colic were selected if reduction in crying or colic was the main outcome measure. Exclusion criteria were publication in abstracts or letters, infants with a normal pattern of crying or whose mothers had not complained about the crying, infants ≥6 months old, <3 days treatment, or no control group.
Data extraction
Data were extracted on age, sex, age at onset of infantile colic, number of hours of crying each day, proportions of breast fed and firstborn infants, dropout rates, effect sizes, quality scores (maximum 5 points), and family history of atopy. …
