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September 17, 2007Shaking May Cause Brain Damage and Serious Long-Term Effects to Infants |
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From EurekAlert! - Breaking News: If the parents or caregivers cannot find the cause of the inconsolable crying of the infant, they might react sharply and shake the baby. The violent shake of the infant's head causes brain damage and, as a result, the infant stops crying. This is one of the serious consequences extracted from the bibliographic review carried out by a group of interns of the Teaching Maternity Unit of the University College of Health Care of the University of Granada (UGR) published by the Nursing Journal Rol. Concepción Ruiz Rodríguez, lecturer of the Department of Nursing of the UGR and head of the research group, explains that the "shaken baby syndrome" is not well-known and may cause several injuries which, in most cases, have no outward physical signs. Most victims are under two years old, and the most vulnerable victims include premature babies, low-weight babies, babies with excessive colic, disabled babies, twins and stepchildren. The aggressors are chiefly men, frequently the father (44%) followed by the mother's boyfriend living in the family home (20%). According to the information collected from the scientific articles published over the last five years, the researcher assures that "in most of the cases diagnosed, the cause is abuse or mistreatment". For this reason, early detection and especially appropriate prevention by health professionals is essential, because this syndrome may cause serious long-term effects on the infant. It is necessary to offer educational courses for parents and health professionals where they can learn about the characteristics of this syndrome and some strategies to deal with stressful situations.
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