published_or_final_version / Nursing Studies / Master / Master of Nursing

As a baby is born, the umbilical cord is cut and clamped, then it dries up and detaches. During the course of cord detachment and before the wound completely heals up, umbilical cord care is essential for preventing any local infection, which may lead to septicemia or infection of other organs. However, the yellowish and blood-stained discharge from the base of the cord and the appearance of the cord stump often causes anxiety among parents and make them hesitant to provide cord care. Hence, healthcare professionals are responsible for explaining the importance of proper cord care and provide consistent information on the course of cord detachment. This will decrease parental anxiety or the cord-related issues and improve compliance. Currently, different solutions are being used at different healthcare facilities. This leads to confusion among healthcare professionals and parents. Moreover, as evidenced in many studies, different solutions can affect the umbilical cord detachment time and prolongation of umbilical cord separation time, which can cause immense anxiety among the parents. Hence, a solution that is effective in reducing the umbilical cord separation time can help to alleviate parental anxiety. Dry care, such as using cold boiled water to clean the cord, is suggested to be suitable for umbilical cord care as it shortens the umbilical cord separation time compares to alcohol, which is still being used in many healthcare facilities. Therefore, this proposed innovation attempts to promote dry care as the standard umbilical cord care practice, to shorten the umbilical cord separation time, which in turn, decreases parental anxiety and the workload related to cord care for the healthcare professionals. The implementation of dry care was explored and it was found that this innovation is cost-effective and has a high transferability and feasibility in the current setting of Hong Kong Maternal and Child Health Clinics. An evidence-based practice guideline was developed and would be launched initially on a trial basis at one of the Maternal and Child Health Clinics after a well-developed communication and implementation plan is established. It is expected to take about 12 months from gaining approval, implementation of the innovation, data collection and to the last stage, program evaluation. / published_or_final_version / Nursing Studies / Master / Master of Nursing

No description available.

published_or_final_version / Medical Sciences / Master / Master of Medical Sciences

published_or_final_version / abstract / toc / Speech and Hearing Sciences / Master / Master of Science in Audiology

No description available.

Ett av fem spädbarn drabbas av kolik under första tre levnadsmånaderna. I övrigt friska spädbarn skriker, gråter och är otröstbara minst tre timmar i sträck per dag mer än tre dagar i veckan. Trots att kolik är ett vanligt förekommande problem för både spädbarn och föräldrar finns det idag ingen effektiv behandling. Etiologin är oklar men rökning och mental ohälsa hos modern prepartum, födoämnesallergi och ett outvecklat magtarmsystem hos spädbarnet tros vara några bidragande faktorer. Denna litteraturstudie granskar åtta artiklar för att dels undersöka skillnaderna i tarmfloran mellan spädbarn med och utan kolik, om skillnaderna kan förklara kolik samt probiotikas effekt vid kolik. Granskade studier visar att förekomsten av Proteobacteria, koliforma bakterier och Escherichia coli är högre hos spädbarn med kolik. Till skillnad från spädbarn utan kolik uppvisar kolikbarn en mindre bakteriell mångfald, mindre kolonisation av Bacteroidetes och de gynnsamma bakteriesläkterna Lactobacillus och Bifidobacterium. Hos ammade kolikbarn som behandlades med den probiotiska bakteriestammen Lactobacillus reuteri DSM 17938 erhölls i två av tre studier  god effekt av probiotika utan några biverkningar där gråttiden reducerats till mer än hälften. Resultatet varierar geografiskt och evidensen kring probiotikas effekt hos flaskmatade spädbarn med kolik är fortfarande bristfällig. Det är oklart om en förändrad tarmflora kan orsaka kolik eller är ett resultat av koliken då tarmfloran är mycket komplex och fler studier inom området behövs. / One out of five infants suffer from colic during the first three months of life. Otherwise healthy infants suffer from severe crying and are unable to be comforted during at least three consecutive hours per day for more than three days a week. Although colic is a common problem for both babies and parents, there is currently no effective treatment. The etiology is unclear, but smoking and  prepartum maternal mental illness, allergies to foods and an undeveloped gastrointestinal system in infants are believed to be contributing factors. This study reviews eight articles that examine the differences in intestinal flora between infants with and without colic, to see if the differences can explain colic and probiotic effect in colicky infants. Reviewed studies show that the prevalence of Proteobacteria, coliforms and Escherichia coli is higher in infants with colic. Unlike infants without colic, colicky infants exhibit a minor bacterial diversity, reduced colonization of Bacteroidetes and the beneficial bacterial genus of Lactobacillus and Bifidobacterium. Breastfed colicky infants treated with the probiotic bacterial strain, Lactobacillus reuteri DSM 17938, obtained, in two out of three studies, a positive effect on colic symtoms without any side effects, where the crying time was reduced to less than half. Results vary geographically and evidence for a probiotic effect on bottle-fed infants with colic is still inadequate. It remains unclear whether an altered intestinal flora can cause colic or is a result of colic as the intestinal flora is very complex and more studies are needed in this area.

No description available.

No description available.

No description available.