Determining the sources of stress experienced by parents can help NICU nurses use appropriate interventions in cooperation with other members of the team to decrease the stress that parents experience.

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Çetinkaya B, Başbakkal Z. International Journal of Nursing Practice, 2012; 18: 164–169The effectiveness of aromatherapy massage using lavender oil as a treatment for infantile colicThe aim of this paper was to investigate the effect of aromatherapy massage using lavender oil as a possible treatment for this condition. This research was carried out on a group of 40 infants between 2 and 6 weeks of age with a gestational age of 38–42 weeks and normal development and growth. All the infants weighed between 2500 and 4000 g at birth and all exhibited the signs of colic.Infants in the treatment group received abdominal massage by their mothers using lavender oil, while those in the control group were not subject to an intervention. The infants in both control and treatment groups were monitored once a week by the researchers, in total five times. The effect of the massage was measured in terms of changes in the length of time the infants cried per week. The use of aromatherapy massage using lavender oil was found to be effective in reducing the symptoms of colic.

This cross-sectional and descriptive study was designed to determine symptoms emerging due to chemotherapy treatment and their effects on children's quality of life. The research was carried out between February 2008 and February 2009 at the pediatric oncology clinics in four hospitals, focusing on 93 patients receiving chemotherapy. A survey form, the Pediatric Quality of Life Inventory (PedsQL 4.0) and the Memorial Symptom Assessment Scale (MSAS) were used as data collection tools. Chi-square and Student t tests were performed for data analysis. Some 51.6% of the children were aged 13-15 years old, and 51.8% were boys and 50.5% were diagnosed as having solid tumors. There were significant relations between: antimetabolite chemotherapeutics and feeling irritable and worrying (p=0.001, p=0.030); vinkoalkaloid and numbness/tingling in hands/feet (p=0.043); antracyclines and lack of energy and skin changes (p=0.021, p=0.004); and corticosteroids and lack of appetite, nausea and sadness (p=0.008, p=0.009, p=0.009). Several symptoms such as feeling sad, worrying and feeling irritable caused a significant decrease in the total domain of quality of life scores (p=0.034, p=0.012, p=0.010, respectively). Chemotherapeutic drugs can cause symptoms that can seriously affect quality of life in children.

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