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TOPLINE:

Having infant colic, characterized by unsoothable crying and apparent abdominal discomfort, was associated with an increased risk for atopic conditions and respiratory illnesses throughout childhood and adolescence.

METHODOLOGY:

• Researchers analyzed data from a prospective cohort study of mother-child pairs in Massachusetts to examine the association between infant colic or excessive crying and the risk for subsequent atopic and respiratory outcomes.
• Data from 1249 children were collected at multiple life stages: Infancy (median age, 6.3 months), toddlerhood (median age, 2.1 years), early childhood (median age, 3.1 years), mid-childhood (median age, 7.7 years), early adolescence (median age, 12.9 years), and mid-adolescence (median age, 17.5 years).
• The study included children who had infant colic characterized by inconsolable crying and apparent abdominal discomfort, children who cried excessively during infancy but did not have colic, and unaffected children who did not have either condition. 

TAKEAWAY:

• Children who had colic as infants were twice as likely to develop eczema by mid-childhood (relative risk ratio [RRR], 2.1; 95% CI, 1.2-3.8) compared with those without infant colic or excessive crying.
• Infant colic was also associated with an increased risk for allergic rhinitis in both early childhood (RRR, 2.2; 95% CI, 1.4-3.6) and mid-childhood (RRR, 1.6; 95% CI, 1.1-2.4).
• Children with colic during infancy had a higher risk for asthma in mid-childhood (RRR, 1.6; 95% CI, 1.1-2.4) and mid-adolescence (RRR, 1.8; 95% CI, 1.1-3.1) and had a twofold risk for respiratory infections in mid-adolescence (RRR, 2.1; 95% CI, 1.2-3.7) than those without infant colic or excessive crying.
• Excessive crying without colic was not associated with an increased risk for atopic or respiratory conditions.

IN PRACTICE:

“These results support the idea that colic — distinct from excessive crying — may be an early marker of inflammation and/or an atopic response that impacts, among other systems, the respiratory tract,” the authors wrote.

SOURCE:

Karen M. Switkowski, PhD, MPH, with Harvard Medical School and the Harvard Pilgrim Health Care Institute, Boston, was the corresponding author of the study, which was published online on April 23 in The Journal of Pediatrics.

LIMITATIONS:

Only about half the children included in infancy had outcome data available by mid-adolescence. Additionally, the researchers relied on parent reports of atopic outcomes and respiratory infections instead of objective measures.

DISCLOSURES:

This study was supported by the US National Institutes of Health. One author reported receiving research funding from AbbVie and serving as a consultant to Reckitt, Mead Johnson, Perrigo, and ByHeart.

This article was created using several editorial tools, including AI, as part of the process. Human editors reviewed this content before publication.