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A Randomized Controlled Trial of Three Non-pharmacologic Analgesic Techniques for Casting of Clubfoot Infants

S

Shriners Hospitals for Children

Status

Completed

Conditions

Clubfoot

Treatments

Other: Water bottle administration
Other: Sucrose bottle administration
Other: Milk bottle administration

Study type

Interventional

Funder types

Other

Identifiers

NCT02395185
LEX-102

Details and patient eligibility

About

While it has been shown that sucrose or milk ingestion decreases pain responses in heel sticks, no study up to this point has determined the best intervention for decreasing the pain response during casting for clubfoot deformity.

The goal of this study is to investigate the effect of three different non-pharmacologic interventions (sucrose, milk, water) on pain response during clubfoot casting.

This study will allow us to discern the best non-pharmacologic intervention for pain control during clubfoot casting and to provide a more pleasant, comfortable experience for patients and families.

Full description

Clubfoot deformity in newborns is common, occurring in 1-2/1000 births. Treatment of this deformity has shifted from surgical to non-surgical management. The non-surgical management includes utilizing the Ponseti technique of manipulation and casting, followed by Achilles tenotomy and brace application. The newborn undergoes, on average, 4-6 casts before the foot deformity is corrected. During this manipulation and casting, the infants can become fussy and irritable. This irritability is likely due to discomfort felt from the manipulative process and subsequent casting.

Studies that have focused on decreasing the pain response to heel sticks for laboratory testing in the neonatal intensive care units used sucrose or milk ingestion and swaddling in newborns to decrease pain responses. Both sucrose and milk have been shown to decrease the pain response as measured by the Premature Infant Pain Profile (PIPP) or the Bernese Pain Scale for Neonates. In addition, other pain scales have been used in newborn babies including the CRIES, CHIPPS, NIPS, and COMFORT scales to evaluate the effectiveness of pain relieving interventions. These scales were used alongside objective physiologic measurements such as heart rate, heart rate variability (HRV), respiratory rate, and oxygen saturation.

While it has been shown that sucrose or milk ingestion decreases pain responses in heel sticks, no study up to this point has determined the best intervention for decreasing the pain response during casting for clubfoot deformity. The goal of this study is to investigate the effect of three different non-pharmacologic interventions (sucrose, milk, water) on pain response during clubfoot casting, allowing us to discern the best non-pharmacologic intervention for pain control during clubfoot casting and to provide a more pleasant, comfortable experience for patients and families. A secondary objective is to investigate whether or not family environment or the level of anxiety felt by the parents impacts the pain felt by the infant during the casting process.

Enrollment

33 patients

Sex

All

Ages

1 day to 6 months old

Volunteers

No Healthy Volunteers

Inclusion criteria

  • idiopathic clubfoot deformity
  • undergoing clubfoot casting for correction

Exclusion criteria

  • cannot use a bottle for feeding
  • on solid food
  • have had surgery
  • have been given an analgesic within three hours prior to data collection

Trial design

Primary purpose

Supportive Care

Allocation

Randomized

Interventional model

Crossover Assignment

Masking

Double Blind

33 participants in 3 patient groups

Milk
Experimental group
Description:
Milk bottle administration
Treatment:
Other: Sucrose bottle administration
Other: Milk bottle administration
Other: Water bottle administration
Water
Experimental group
Description:
Water bottle administration
Treatment:
Other: Sucrose bottle administration
Other: Milk bottle administration
Other: Water bottle administration
Sucrose
Experimental group
Description:
Sucrose bottle administration
Treatment:
Other: Sucrose bottle administration
Other: Milk bottle administration
Other: Water bottle administration

Trial contacts and locations

0

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Data sourced from clinicaltrials.gov

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