Shaken Baby Syndrome Analysis

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Article 1 Purpose/summary: The purpose of the study was to determine if a statewide abusive head trauma (AHT) prevention and education program would decrease the occurrence of Shaken Baby Syndrome compared to other states without the intervention program. The Period of PURPLE Crying intervention and prevention program educates parents about typical infant crying and the dangers associated with shaking an infant or young child. The researchers hypothesized a 50% drop in the occurrence of AHT in North Carolina from the previously established baseline. The program included a 3-minute education provided by the nurse, an informational booklet and a video prior to discharge from the hospital. The message was then reinforced during doctor's visits throughout the first month of life and through radio commercials. Secondary to the study's main purpose, the researchers obtained data from the nurse advice telephone line to examine any changes in rate of …show more content…

The researchers used a difference-in-difference analysis to control for economic influences associated with the recession, which occurred during the intervention program. This analysis did not have a statistically significant effect on the incidence of Shaken Baby Syndrome. On the other hand, the secondary comparison, which analyzed nurse advice line calls provided useful information regarding infant crying. This analysis found that infant crying related calls decreased by 20% for babies under 3 months of age and decreased by 12% for children between the ages of 3-12 months of age. The decline in crying related calls were statistically significant, particularly for children under 3 months old. Based on the findings from the study, there is no clinical significance to the implementation of this education and prevention program as a way to decrease the incidence of abusive head trauma or Shaken Baby

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