@article{article_1565416, title={The Effect of Cradle Cap Care Education Given to Mothers with 0-12 Months Infants on Mothers’ Knowledge Levels}, journal={Istanbul Gelisim University Journal of Health Sciences}, pages={249–267}, year={2026}, DOI={10.38079/igusabder.1565416}, url={https://izlik.org/JA89CU44JG}, author={Bursalı, Tilbe and Özgüven Öztornacı, Beste}, keywords={Cradle cap, infant care, mothers, education, pediatric nursing}, abstract={<p>Aim: The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of cradle cap care education given to mothers with 0-12 months old infants on their knowledge levels. This age range (0-12 months) was selected because it is the period when the barrier functions of a baby’s skin are most fragile. <br />Method: This study was quasi-experimental designed and conducted between April 2023 and July 2023 with 33 mothers of infants aged 0-12 months enrolled in a family health centre. "Cradle Cap Care in Infants" education programme prepared by the researchers was applied to the mothers. The data were collected three times: before, two weeks after, and two months after the education with the "Mother-Infant Sociodemographic Characteristics Form" and "Maternal Knowledge Assessment Form for Cradle Cap Care in Infants". Correlation and one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) were used to evaluate the relationships between mothers’ knowledge scores and maternal age and educational status. Analysis of variance for repeated measures and independent samples t-test were used to determine the differences between knowledge scores obtained from pre- and post-education tests. <br />Results: The maximum score that can be obtained from the ‘Maternal Knowledge Assessment Form for Cradle Cap Care in Infants’ is 18. The mean score of the test performed before the education was 6.73, the mean score of the test performed in the second week after the education was 10.15, and the mean score of the test performed in the second month after the education was 10.00. Accordingly, a significant difference was found between the pre- education test score and the knowledge level scores obtained from the tests after the education given to the mothers (p<0.05). No statistically significant difference was found between the knowledge scores obtained two weeks and two months after the education, indicating the maintenance of knowledge over time. It was observed that the age and education level of mothers did not create a significant difference in pre-test knowledge scores. It has been determined that the majority of mothers correctly perform some basic practices related to infant cradle cap care. However, the rate of incorrect answers is high for some questions. Most incorrectly answered statements are related to cultural habits and information passed down from previous generations. <br />Conclusion: It was determined that the knowledge level of the mothers about cradle cap care was below the average before the education. It was found that the cradle cap care education provided a significant increase in the knowledge level of the mothers. The findings suggest that structured and evidence-based cradle cap care education delivered by nurses can support appropriate infant skin care practices and ensure sustained maternal knowledge. It is recommended that cradle cap care education be integrated into routine infant follow-up visits in primary health care settings. </p>}, number={28}