Printer Friendly
The Free Library
14,651,959 articles and books
Member login
User name  
Password 
 
Join us Forgot password?

Imagination can reduce persistent abdominal pain in kids.


Byline: ANI

Washington, Oct 12 (ANI): A new study has revealed that children with persistent abdominal pain Abdominal pain can be one of the symptoms associated with transient disorders or serious disease. Making a definitive diagnosis of the cause of abdominal pain can be difficult, because many diseases can result in this symptom. Abdominal pain is a common problem.  who use audio recordings of guided imagery Guided Imagery Definition

Guided imagery is the use of relaxation and mental visualization to improve mood and/or physical well-being.
Purpose
 along with standard medical treatment are three times more likely to improve the problem.

And those benefits were consistent for six months after treatment had ended.

"What is especially exciting about our study is that children can clearly reduce their abdominal pain a lot on their own with guidance from audio recordings, and they get much better results that way than from medical care alone," said lead author Dr Miranda van Tilburg, assistant professor in the Division of Gastroenterology gastroenterology

Medical specialty dealing with digestion and the digestive system. In the 17th century Jan Baptista van Helmont conducted the first scientific studies in the field; William Beaumont published his own observations in 1833.
 and Hepatology in the University of North Carolina North Carolina, state in the SE United States. It is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean (E), South Carolina and Georgia (S), Tennessee (W), and Virginia (N). Facts and Figures


Area, 52,586 sq mi (136,198 sq km). Pop.
 (UNC (Universal Naming Convention) A standard for identifying servers, printers and other resources in a network, which originated in the Unix community. A UNC path uses double slashes or backslashes to precede the name of the computer. ) School of Medicine and a member of the UNC Centre for Functional GI and Motility motility /mo·til·i·ty/ (mo-til´ite) the ability to move spontaneously.mo´tile
Motility
Motility is spontaneous movement.
 Disorders.

"Such self-administered treatment is, of course, very inexpensive and can be used in addition to other treatments, which potentially opens the door for easily enhancing treatment outcomes for a lot of children suffering from frequent stomach aches," van Tilburg added.

During the study, the researchers focused on functional abdominal pain, defined as persistent pain with no identifiable underlying disease that interferes with activities.

They looked at 34 children ages 6 to 15 years old who had been diagnosed with functional abdominal pain and received standard medical care.

Of them 19 were randomized ran·dom·ize  
tr.v. ran·dom·ized, ran·dom·iz·ing, ran·dom·iz·es
To make random in arrangement, especially in order to control the variables in an experiment.
 to receive eight weeks of guided imagery treatment.

The guided imagery sessions were jointly developed by van Tilburg, co-investigator Olafur Palsson, Psy.D. and Marsha Turner, the study coordinator.

The treatment consisted of a series of four biweekly bi·week·ly  
adj.
1. Happening every two weeks.

2. Happening twice a week; semiweekly.

n. pl. bi·week·lies
A publication issued every two weeks.

adv.
1. Every two weeks.
, 20-minute sessions and shorter 10-minute daily sessions. In session one, for example, the CD directs children to imagine floating on a cloud and relaxing progressively.

The session then gives them therapeutic suggestions and imagery for reducing discomfort, such as letting a special shiny object melt into their hand and then placing their hand on their belly, spreading warmth and light from the hand inside the tummy to make a protective barrier inside that prevents anything from irritating the belly.

In the group that used guided imagery, the children reported that the CDs were easy and enjoyable to use.

In that group, 73.3 percent reported that their abdominal pain was reduced by half or more by the end of the treatment course. Only 26.7 percent in the standard medical care only group achieved the same level of improvement.

The study concluded that guided imagery treatment plus medical care was superior to standard medical care alone for the treatment of functional abdominal pain.

The study appears in journal Pediatrics. (ANI)

Copyright 2009 Asian News International The Asian News International (ANI) agency provides multimedia news to China and 50 bureaus in India. It covers virtually all of South Asia since its foundation and presently claims, on its official website, to be the leading South Asia-wide news agency.  (ANI) - All Rights Reserved.

Provided by Syndigate.info an Albawaba.com company
COPYRIGHT 2009 Al Bawaba (Middle East) Ltd.
No portion of this article can be reproduced without the express written permission from the copyright holder.
Copyright 2009 Gale, Cengage Learning. All rights reserved.

 Reader Opinion

Title:

Comment:



 

Article Details
Printer friendly Cite/link Email Feedback
Publication:Asian News International
Date:Oct 21, 2009
Words:445
Previous Article:Oram may retire from test cricket to revive ODI, T20 career.
Next Article:Oprah Winfrey sued by flight attendant over plane sex allegations.
Topics:



Related Articles
Major Pancreatic Resections for Chronic Pancreatitis: Histologic Findings and Their Association With Persistent Pain.(Statistical Data Included)
Listening carefully to the client--the therapist's responsibility.
Dear MIRIAM: NEEDLE OUT PAIN.(Features)
Novel agent improves GI function in pain patients.(Pain Medicine)(gastroinetstinal)
Biofeedback eases recurrent abdominal pain.(Child/Adolescent Psychiatry)
Should Narcotics Be Given to Patients with Abdominal Pain?
Headache, abdominal pain pose liability risk.
Malawi kids 'taking in 50 ciggies a day'.
Reduce legal risks of chest pain.
Imagination can reduce persistent abdominal pain in kids.

Terms of use | Copyright © 2009 Farlex, Inc. | Feedback | For webmasters | Submit articles