Parental knowledge on infant crying and abusive head trauma and relevant shaking behaviors in China.
BACKGROUND
This study aims to characterize the knowledge about infant crying and abusive head trauma (AHT), and shaking behaviors in parents of children in China, which are lacking currently.


METHODS
A cross-sectional survey was conducted in 2020. We collected information about the knowledge of the typical patterns of infant crying and AHT, and asked about beliefs of the effects of violent shaking on children's health, and shaking behavior among parents.


RESULTS
A total of 568 parents completed the questionnaire, and only 1.6 % of them answered all nine knowledge questions related to infant crying correctly. Overall, 42.6 % of participants reported they had heard about AHT, but only 17.1 % of the parents reported they knew enough about the dangers of infant shaking. About 45 % of the parents acknowledged that they had shaken their infants at least once. Parents who were from western region of China (OR = 3.860; 95 % CI = 1.871, 7.966; p < 0.001) and have felt very frustrated because of the baby's crying over half of the time (OR = 3.401; 95 % CI = 1.862, 6.211; p < 0.001) had the highest risk of shaking. Majority of the parents reported that they needed further information about infant soothing techniques, knowledge of prevention and treatment about AHT.


CONCLUSIONS
Majority of Chinese parents do not have enough knowledge about normal infant crying, nevertheless, most of them expressing needs in learning more. Community-wide advocating efforts aiming to educate parents on awareness and knowledge about AHT should be a health priority in China.
['Gao|Qi|Q|', 'Tong|Linhang|L|', 'Tang|Lixia|L|', 'Zhong|Weiqiang|W|', 'Zhu|Huiping|H|']
D002648:Child D002649:Child Abuse D002681:China D006259:Craniocerebral Trauma D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies D003448:Crying D006801:Humans D007223:Infant D010290:Parents D038642:Shaken Baby Syndrome
Infant crying Abusive head trauma Behavior Chinese Shaken baby syndrome