Pediatrician's knowledge on the management of the infant who cries excessively in the first months of life

• Main Authors: Ana Carolina C. Marcon, Mário César Vieira, Mauro Batista de Morais
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: Sociedade de Pediatria de São Paulo 2014-06-01
• Series: Revista Paulista de Pediatria
• Subjects: lloro; lactante; educación en salud
• Online Access: http://www.scielo.br/scielo.php?script=sci_arttext&pid=S0103-05822014000200187&lng=en&tlng=en

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the attitude, the practice and the knowledge of pediatricians regarding the management of the infant who cries excessively in the first months of life.METHODS: Descriptive cross-sectional study that enrolled pediatricians (n=132) randomly interviewed at a Pediatric meeting in Brazil, in August 2012. The data were collected by a self-administered standardized form after reading the hypothetical case of an infant who cried excessively.RESULTS: The majority of the participants were females, the mean age was 39 years and the average mean time working in the specialty was 14 years; 52.2% were Board Certified by the Brazilian Society of Pediatrics. The diagnosis most often considered was gastroesophageal reflux disease (62.9%), followed by infant colic (23.5%) and cow's milk allergy (6.8%). The diagnostic test most frequently mentioned was 24-hour esophageal pH-monitoring (21.9%). The medications most frequently indicated were domperidone (30.3%), the combination of domperidone with ranitidine (12.1%) and paracetamol (6%).CONCLUSIONS: In the approach of the infant who cries excessively, diagnostic tests are frequently requested and unnecessary medical treatment is usually recommended.