Come join our research study about infant crying

What is the study about?
Many babies cry a great deal in the first few months of life, but pediatricians and researchers do not know why some babies continue to cry a lot. We are interested in the causes of excessive infant crying. In this study, we want to see how your baby controls his or her body during play and/or feeding and how that may relate to crying. We are attempting to understand how infant crying relates to behavior and development.

Who can participate in the study?
Any baby who is 6 to 10 weeks old may be enrolled in the study. If you would like to learn more, call the Fussy Baby study doordinator at (312) 436-1499 or e-mail fussybabystudy@yahoo.com.

If I decide to participate, what would be involved?
As a study participant we will first ask you to fill out three days worth of cry diaries that deal with your baby’s crying, sleeping, and feeding patterns. These diaries have been used in other programs and studies with parents and infants. While it takes a few precious minutes to fill out the diary each day, many parents have found them useful because they reveal patterns of  their baby’s crying, sleeping, and eating  during the day and night.

In addition to the diary, the study involves bringing your baby to the Brain-Body Center at the University of Illinois at Chicago for up to three visits, when your baby is 6 months, 12 months, and 24 months old. During each visit, we will be interacting with your baby while he or she participates in some interesting activities. In order to understand more about how your baby is responding, we want to record your baby’s heart rate and breathing rate while he or she is playing. Often when babies are happy or interested in something, their heart rate and breathing rate may change. During each visit, we will ask you to fill out questionnaires that can take from 30 to 45 minutes to complete. You will be compensated $50 for your time for each session (up to three sessions) and reimbursed for travel expenses and parking. This research study provides you with an opportunity for you to learn more about your baby’s behavior and development.

Who is conducting the research?
This study is a collaboration of the University of Illinois at Chicago, Erikson Institute, and the University of Chicago. The researchers are Stephen Porges, Ph.D., and Keri Heilman, Ph.D., from the University of Illinois at Chicago; Linda Gilkerson, Ph.D., Zack Boukydis, Ph.D., and Tiffany Burkhardt, M.A., from Erikson Institute; and Larry Gray, M.D., from the University of Chicago.

If you would like to participate or contact us about the study, call the Fussy Baby Study Coordinator at (312) 436-1499 or e-mail fussybabystudy@yahoo.com.