Evidence map›Paper›PMID 29371279›Full record

SynthesisBMJ open2018

Manual therapy for unsettled, distressed and excessively crying infants: a systematic review and meta-analyses.

Dawn Carnes, Austin Plunkett, Julie Ellwood, Clare Miles

Abstract readMeta-AnalysisSystematic Review
PubMed Full text at PMC Publisher
In one paragraph

Synthesis in BMJ open, 2018. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 18 papers, 3 of them syntheses that pooled it.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
18citing papers in PubMed, 3 pooled it
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

18 citing papers in PubMed, 3 syntheses or guidelines pooled it.

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  3. Manual therapy for the pediatric population: a systematic review.BMC complementary and alternative medicine · 2019
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4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

4 authors.

Dawn CarnesBarts and The London School of Medicine and Dentistry, Centre for Primary Care and Public Health, Queen Mary University of London, London, UK.
Austin PlunkettBarts and The London School of Medicine and Dentistry, Centre for Primary Care and Public Health, Queen Mary University of London, London, UK.
Julie EllwoodNational Council for Osteopathic Research, London, UK.
Clare MilesBarts and The London School of Medicine and Dentistry, Centre for Primary Care and Public Health, Queen Mary University of London, London, UK.

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

objectiveTo conduct a systematic review and meta-analyses to assess the effect of manual therapy interventions for healthy but unsettled, distressed and excessively crying infants and to provide information to help clinicians and parents inform decisions about care.

methodsWe reviewed published peer-reviewed primary research articles in the last 26 years from nine databases (Medline Ovid, Embase, Web of Science, Physiotherapy Evidence Database, Osteopathic Medicine Digital Repository , Cochrane (all databases), Index of Chiropractic Literature, Open Access Theses and Dissertations and Cumulative Index to Nursing and Allied Health Literature). Our inclusion criteria were: manual therapy (by regulated or registered professionals) of unsettled, distressed and excessively crying infants who were otherwise healthy and treated in a primary care setting. Outcomes of interest were: crying, feeding, sleep, parent-child relations, parent experience/satisfaction and parent-reported global change.

resultsNineteen studies were selected for full review: seven randomised controlled trials, seven case series, three cohort studies, one service evaluation study and one qualitative study.We found moderate strength evidence for the effectiveness of manual therapy on: reduction in crying time (favourable: -1.27 hours per day (95% CI -2.19 to -0.36)), sleep (inconclusive), parent-child relations (inconclusive) and global improvement (no effect). The risk of reported adverse events was low: seven non-serious events per 1000 infants exposed to manual therapy (n=1308) and 110 per 1000 in those not exposed.

conclusionsSome small benefits were found, but whether these are meaningful to parents remains unclear as does the mechanisms of action. Manual therapy appears relatively safe. PROSPERO REGISTRATION NUMBER: CRD42016037353.

Indexed as

Infant BehaviorCryingEmotionsHumansInfantInfant CareMusculoskeletal ManipulationsParent-Child RelationsRandomized Controlled Trials as Topic’colic'Excessive CryingInfantsManual TherapyPaediatrics

Identifiers

PMID29371279
PMCPMC5988120

What OpenQuestion holds

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LicenceCC BY-NC
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Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.