Table 1.
GRADE evaluation of interventions for colic in infants
| Important outcomes | Duration of crying caused by colic, adverse effects | ||||||||
| Number of studies (participants) | Outcome | Comparison | Type of evidence | Quality | Consistency | Directness | Effect size | GRADE | Comment |
| What are the effects of treatments for colic in infants? | |||||||||
| 1 (66) | Duration of crying | Advice to carry infant v general advice | 4 | –2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | Low | Quality points deducted for sparse data and incomplete reporting of results |
| 1 (42) | Duration of crying | Advice to reduce stimulation v no advice | 4 | –2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | Low | Quality points deducted for sparse data and uncertain validity of outcome measure |
| 1 (122) | Duration of crying | Casein hydrolysate milk or hypoallergenic diet for breastfeeding mother v cows' milk or control diet for mother | 4 | –2 | 0 | –1 | 0 | Very low | Quality points deducted for sparse data and incomplete reporting of data. Directness point deducted for inclusion of different interventions |
| 1 (38) | Duration of crying | Counselling plus reassurance v crib vibrator device plus reassurance v reassurance alone | 4 | –2 | 0 | –1 | 0 | Very low | Quality point deducted for sparse data and incomplete reporting of results. Directness point deducted for range of interventions advised as part of counselling |
| 1 (20) | Duration of crying | Counselling v elimination of cows' milk or soya milk with casein hydrolysate | 4 | –1 | 0 | –1 | 0 | Low | Quality point deducted for sparse data. Directness point deducted for range of interventions advised as part of counselling |
| 1 (58) | Duration of crying | Infant massage v crib vibrator device | 4 | –1 | 0 | –1 | 0 | Low | Quality point deducted for sparse data. Directness point deducted for inclusion of babies without colic |
| 1 (53) | Duration of crying | Low-lactose milk v standard milk | 4 | –2 | 0 | –1 | 0 | Very low | Quality points deducted for sparse data and methodological flaws. Directness point deducted for uncertain lactose intolerance in babies |
| 3 (136) | Duration of crying | Simethicone v placebo | 4 | –2 | –1 | 0 | 0 | Very low | Quality points deducted for sparse data and methodological flaws. Consistency point deducted for conflicting results |
| 1 (41) | Duration of crying | Simethicone v spinal manipulation | 4 | –2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | Low | Quality points deducted for sparse data and lack of blinding |
| 1 (86) | Duration of crying | Spinal palpation v holding | 4 | –1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | Moderate | Quality point deducted for sparse data |
| 1 (43) | Duration of crying | Whey hydrolysate milk v cows' milk formula | 4 | –2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | Low | Quality points deducted for sparse data and flawed blinding |
Type of evidence: 4 = RCT; 2 = Observational; 1 = Non-analytical/expert opinion. Consistency: similarity of results across studies Directness: generalisability of population or outcomes Effect size: based on relative risk or odds ratio