The effects of a blended educational, supportive, and follow-up infantile colic program on parents' care burden: A randomized controlled trial

 Infantile colic (IC) imposes multifactorial problems on the parents, and appropriate interventions are needed to alleviate the care burden. 
 This study aimed to assess the effects of an educational, supportive, and follow-up IC program on the parents' caregiver burden (CB). 
 This randomized controlled trial was conducted with 64 parents whose infants suffered from IC. Participants were randomly assigned to an intervention group (n = 32) and a control group (n = 32). The intervention group received a blended educational, supportive, and follow-up intervention for 2 weeks. The control group received routine care. Caregiver burden was assessed on three occasions, before, immediately after, and 1 month after the intervention, using the Zarit Burden Scale. Data were analyzed through repeated-measures analysis of variance, independent-samples t-test, Chi-square, Fisher's exact, and Mann–Whitney U tests. 
 There was a significant difference between the mean scores of CB in the two groups measured immediately and 1 month after the interventions (P < 0.001). The mean score of CB was significantly lower in the intervention group than in the control group after the intervention (P < 0.05). 
 The blended educational, supportive, and follow-up program could help alleviate parental care burden. Implementing such a program is recommended to reduce CB and associated problems among parents.