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eCAM Advance Access originally published online on May 17, 2007
eCAM 2008 5(3):345-354; doi:10.1093/ecam/nem032
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© 2007 The Author(s).
This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution Non-Commercial License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/2.0/uk/) which permits unrestricted non-commercial use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

Dominican Children with HIV not Receiving Antiretrovirals: Massage Therapy Influences their Behavior and Development

Maria Hernandez-Reif1, Gail Shor-Posner2, Jeannette Baez3, Solange Soto3, Rosangela Mendoza3, Raquel Castillo3, Noaris Quintero2, Eddy Perez3 and Guoyan Zhang4

1Touch Research Institutes, Department of Pediatrics, 2Division of Disease Prevention, Department of Psychiatry & Behavioral Sciences, University of Miami, School of Medicine, USA, 3CENISMI/Robert Reid Cabral Children Hospital, Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic and 4Miami-Dade County Health Department/Florida Department of Health, USA

Forty-eight children (M age = 4.8 years) infected with HIV/AIDS and living in the Dominican Republic were randomly assigned to a massage therapy or a play session control group. The children in the massage therapy group received two weekly 20-min massages for 12 weeks; the children in the control group participated in a play session (coloring, playing with blocks) for the same duration and length as the massage therapy group. Overall, the children in the massage therapy group improved in self-help abilities and communication, suggesting that massage therapy may enhance daily functioning for children with HIV/AIDS. Moreover, the HIV infected children who were six or older also showed a decrease in internalizing behaviors; specifically depressive/anxious behaviors and negative thoughts were reduced. Additionally, baseline assessments revealed IQ equivalence below normal functioning for 70% of the HIV infected children and very high incidences of mood problems (depression, withdrawn) for 40% of the children and anxiety problems for 20% of the children, suggesting the need for better monitoring and alternative interventions in countries with limited resources to improve cognition and the mental health status of children infected with HIV/AIDS.

Keywords: children – behavior, development – HIV – massage

For reprints and all correspondence: Maria Hernandez-Reif, University of Alabama, Department of Human Development and Family Studies, PO Box 870160, Tuscaloosa, AL 35487-0160. Tel: 205-348-5894; Fax: 205-348-8153; E-mail: mhernandez-reif{at}ches.ua.edu

Received May 6, 2006; accepted March 1, 2007


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