Effect of Therapeutic Touch Based on Watson’s Human Care Theory Applied to Infants With Infantile Colic for Different Durations on Colic Symptoms: A Randomized Controlled Study

Abstract

Objective:

We aimed to determine the effect of the different numbers of therapeutic touch sessions, based on Watson’s Human Care Theory, on colic symptoms (crying time, sleep time, Infant Colic Scale [ICS]) in infants with infantile colic.

Methods:

This randomized controlled trial included 96 infants aged 4 to 8 weeks who met Rome IV criteria for infantile colic in a hospital outpatient pediatric unit. Infants were randomly assigned into 3 groups: intervention 1 (therapeutic touch for 1 week, n = 32), intervention 2 (therapeutic touch for 2 weeks, n = 32), and control (usual care only, n = 32). In both intervention groups, therapeutic touch was administered in addition to usual care, 3 times per week. Data were collected at baseline and at the 1st, 2nd, 4th, and 8th weeks. The primary outcome was crying time; secondary outcomes were sleep time and ICS Score.

Results:

There were statistically significant differences among the groups’ crying times (F = 222.612; P < .001; ${\eta }_p^2$  = 0.827), sleep times (F = 47.244; P < .001; ${\eta }_p^2$  = 0.504), and ICS total scores (F = 219.247; P < .001; ${\eta }_p^2$  = 0.825). When infants in intervention groups were compared with the control group infants, the effect size (group × time interaction) was large. Infants receiving therapeutic touch showed reductions in crying and improvements in sleep compared with those receiving usual care. Infants in the 2-week therapeutic touch group demonstrated greater and longer-lasting benefits than those receiving therapeutic touch for 1 week.

Conclusions:

Therapeutic touch based on Watson’s Human Care Theory effectively reduced colic symptoms in infants, with greater benefits observed as the number of sessions increased.

Trial Registration:

clinicaltrials.gov, NCT05244291.