Latest paediatric nursing research topics
In the event that you have chosen pediatric nursing as your area of specialty, you will be required to write a research paper that will be a gauge of how well you understand that field. Having a variety of different pediatric nursing research topics will assist you to narrow down the best topic for your research paper.
There are many areas that you can choose to focus your discussion on. Many students, however, find it a challenge to find a topic that has enough research material and one that will fetch them the highest possible grades.
In this article, you will find topics on different areas which you can choose for your paper or one that will inspire you in finding the best topic to write about.
What is pediatric nursing?
The practice of nursing with children and youth and their families in health promotion, health restoration, and health management is what is considered pediatric nursing. Not only is pediatric nursing aimed at child care but also at the well-being of the family.
If this is your field of interest, your roles will include having control of your emotions, love for children, good interaction skills, empathy, and good stress management. Considering that this area is for nursing care for children and youth, there are quite a number of topics that you can choose from for your nursing research paper.
Pediatric nursing research paper topics
Nursing is broad and requires you to have enough time to research your topic and find an interesting topic. This article will discuss what a research paper is, and what to consider when choosing pediatric nursing research topics and provide you with a list of potential research topics.
A pediatric nursing research paper, usually shows that you can conduct research and that you have understood the topic of the field that you have chosen. Further, the paper helps you familiarize yourself with your area of specialization.
A research paper is an essential component in your studies and equally in your grade. You will be required to complete this paper in order to graduate. It is, therefore, crucial that you choose a topic that will help you succeed.
How to choose pediatric nursing research topics
It is important that you narrow down your focus when doing research on pediatric nursing research topics paper. Even within pediatrics, there are several areas that you can opt to base your discussion on. A large problem is impossible to fully examine. To ensure that you have a unique and well-researched paper, solve a specific problem within your specialty.
Further, choose a current topic that has enough literature. However, add new information to make standout and unique. In pediatrics, there are areas such as neonatal, NICU, and PICU among others all of which offer great areas for research topics. Since a research paper is crucial, ensure that the topic is:
- Relevant
- Original
- Interesting
- Explorative
Before you narrow down to the topic you wish to discuss, consider asking your professor for ways and ideas as well as directions to make it more specific. This will ensure that you come up with a successful paper.
Pediatric Nursing research topics
As a pediatric nurse, you need to focus your research on topics within childhood nursing. Examples of such topics include
- Ethics of pediatric care
- Causes of Tourette’s in children
- Possible measles complications in children
- Development of childhood cancer treatment
- Malnutrition treatment in children
- Diagnosis and treatment of respiratory illnesses in children
- Prevention of malnutrition in children
- Antibiotic resistance in children
- Causes of childhood obesity
- Treatment of ADHD
- Ethics of pediatric care
- Impacts of antibiotics on childhood immunity
Pediatric oncology research topics
- Communication difficulties in pediatric hematology
- Recent trends in pediatric oncology nursing
- Grieving among pediatric oncology nursing
- Work-related stress for pediatric oncology nurses
- Safety standards for pediatric oncology
- Emotional hazards for pediatric oncology nursing
- Burnout among pediatric oncology nurses
- Music therapy in pediatric oncology
- Cultural competence of pediatric oncology nurses
- Protocols for febrile pediatric oncology patients
- Family and patient education to the newly diagnosed pediatric oncology patients
- Psychological issues in pediatric oncology
- Communication during palliative care and end of life
- Delivering comprehensive palliative care
- Comparison between past and present surgical oncology nursing
- The response of the hematopoietic system in oncology patients during radiotherapy
- Leukemia cells and the effects on the immune system
- Childhood acute leukemia
- Risk-reducing strategies to prevent blindness in children receiving oxygen therapy
- Psychological issues of children with cancer and their families
- New ways of optimizing childhood cancer treatment
Evidence-based practice in pediatric nursing topics
How do you determine that a new treatment is right for a child under your care? Evidence-based practice is aimed at helping you answer this question when caring for your patient. The evidence-based practice combines clinical experience as well as taking into account the values of each patient in order to determine the best practice for each specific situation.
Evidence-based practice follows these four steps:
- Asking a question
- Acquiring information
- Appraising the research
- Applying the findings
If you are looking for evidence-based topics for your pediatric nursing topics for a research paper, below are some examples to choose from
- Preparing children for procedures based on developmental characteristics
- Preparing the family
- General hygiene
- Safety maintaining procedures
- Positioning for procedure
- Specimen collection
- Procedures for administrating medication
- Procedures related to blood administration
- End of life care interventions
- Reduction of pain during minor procedures in infants
- Intramuscular injections in infants
- Pediatrics pain management at the end of life
General Pediatric nursing topics
- Immunization
- Obesity, weight management, and healthy eating
- Diagnosis and management of asthma
- Diagnosis of autism
- Antibiotic resistance in preschool children
- Congenital heart disease
- Child psychiatry
- ADHD causes and treatment
- Adolescent medicine
- Pediatric dermatology
- Neonatal medicine
- Rare diseases
- Pediatric care nursing
- Speech disorders therapy
- Causes of seizures in infants
Neonatal nursing research topics
Neonatology is an area within pediatrics. Development and evolution through technology and scientific advances have led to increasing in the survival of premature infants who require essential care. Neonatal nursing is very demanding but also rewarding.
You will be required to take care of newborn infants with health problems in the first days after birth. You will have in your care, babies with physical defects, infections, and other health problems that may require the infant to spend time in the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU).
Neonatal nursing has robust topics in areas such as understanding the fundamental biology of preterm births and their complications, testing new therapeutics in infants, and developing new knowledge on risks following poor outcomes in sick neonates. Below are topics you can choose to write for your research paper on neonatal nursing in areas such as; pulmonary, neurology, genetics, cardiac, and general neonatal
Pediatric neonatal research topics
Check out this list for pediatric nursing research topics.
- Leading causes of child mortality
- Feeding problems and treatment
- Illness diagnosis in neonates
- Infants eating disorders
- Basics of postpartum infant care
- Neonatal practice in remote areas
- Hygiene and skin care for infants
- Importance of hand hygiene in neonatal units
- Cause of seizures in children
- Modern neonatal practices
- Importance of biomarkers in traumatic brain injury diagnosis in infants
- Impact of maternal obesity on infant development
- Hormones use in fetal lung development
- Potential lung infections and diseases in premature infants
- Neonatal sepsis
- Effects of drug use on infant neurological development
Pulmonary pediatric topics
Most emergency room emergencies are recorded to be from pediatric respiratory disorders. It is, therefore, a\ requirement that nurses must have an understanding of the anatomy, diagnosis, and state of the art treatment knowledge of pediatric respiratory diseases.
Below are topics in nursing care in pediatric respiratory disease that you’re pediatric choose for pediatric nursing research topics.
- Diagnosis of diaphragmatic hernia in infants
- Passive smoker syndrome for children
- Functions and structural features of a newborn’s lung
- Importance of self-care nursing in pediatrics
- Features of vaccination in minors
- Speech disorder therapies
- Causes of diabetes in children
- Neonatal care in the first hour of life
- Hemodynamic monitoring in neonates
- Respiratory care of the neonates
- Reducing early neonatal mortality
- Fetal underdevelopment
- Pulmonary function testing in neonates
- Hormone regulation of fetal development
- Inflammation’s role in lung disease
- Congenital hernia and lung lesions
- Inhaled nitric oxide in neonates
- Factors in tracheal intubation in infants
- Reactions and complications of vaccination against influenza in children
- Health effects attributed to early-life exposure to air pollution
- Monitoring techniques of asthma in children
- Functions of cells and molecules in lung diseases
Neurology pediatric topics
Nursing care for pediatric neurosurgery patients involves taking care of children with neurosurgical problems. Presenting symptoms, findings on neurological examination, and, history assist nurses to understand the neurological disorder and identify each problem. Below are pediatric nursing research topics you can choose from neurological pediatric nursing.
- Causes of abnormal neurological development in children
- Neonatal brain injuries
- Maternal drug use and its effects on neonatal development
- Management of Spinal Bifida
- Neurodevelopmental outcomes
- Effects of inflammation on the neonatal brain
- Prevention and immunization of neonatal meningitis
- Causes and treatment of brain abscess
- Brain malformations
- Tumors of the central nervous system
- Diagnosis of cerebral palsy
- Coma
- Diagnosis and treatment of epilepsy
- Increases intracranial pressure
- Treatment of hydrocephalus
- Pain management in infants
- Spina bifida
- Paraplegia
- The transition from pediatric to adult care
- Do hospitals need oncological critical care units
- Achievements of the 20t century in neurosurgery compared to those in the 21st century
- Neonatal lung disease
- Upper airway disorders
- Obstructive sleep apnea
- Acute respiratory problems
- Pediatric pulmonary physiology
- Stem cells usage in the treatment of pediatric diseases
Genetics nursing research topics
- Neonatal gene therapy
- Biomarkers of neonatal sepsis
- Maternal obesity affects the fetus
- Tissue injury affects inflammation and fibrosis
- Surfactant protein processing
- Surfactant clinical trials
- Insulin resistance
- Gene regulation
- Mitochondrial biology
- Downs syndrome
- Edwards syndrome
- Fragile x syndrome
- Turners syndrome
- Tuberous sclerosis
- Ectodermal dysplasia
- Klippel Feil syndrome
- Achondroplasia
- Aarskog syndrome
cardiac pediatric nursing topics
If you are training to be a cardiology nurse, you will be both the ears and eyes for the patient’s care. You will focus mainly on assessing the child’s heart and lungs as they work together in cardiac disease management. Skills needed for this role include;
- Attention to detail for the health recorder and the patient
- Strong assessment skills of the patient
- Knowledge of anatomy and physiology of the heart
- Knowledge of the medications that affect cardiac function
- Cardiac rhythm problems management
- Early life exposures that cause heart problems
Below are pediatric nursing topics for a research paper on cardiology in pediatric critical care nursing
- Congenital heart disease
- Atrial septic defects
- Ventricular septal defect
- Pulmonary hypertension
- Aortic stenosis
- Holter monitoring
- Tetralogy of Fallot
- Rheumatic fever and rheumatic heart disease(RHD)
- Cardiovascular risks factors from obesity
Adolescent health and development nursing topics
As a nurse, you will often be the first to encounter the youth in various settings. It can be in schools, college health centers, or hospitals. It is critical that you recognize high-risk groups, provide health education and intervene. These roles are essential in restoring stability among the youth and their families.
Adolescence is a rather difficult period for many families and, it is a precarious time for the youth because of the biological and, physiological changes. This stage in growth presents you with many topics to write for your research paper.
- The impact of school-based, nurse-delivered asthma health education
- First alarm and time of diagnosis in autism spectrum disorders
- Impacts of anorexia on cognitive function in children
- Evaluation of language patterns in autistic children
- Factors affecting participation of physically disabled children and adolescents in out of school activities
- Impacts of long hospital stay on children
- Causes of increased fatigue in adolescence
- HIV prevention in adolescence
- Preventing unwanted teenage
- Methods of analyzing adolescent behavior
- Ways of handling adolescent aggression
- pregnancies
- Factors affecting health literacy in early adolescents
- Suicide screening in early adolescents
- Treatment adherence among adolescents
- Health education for families with children diagnosed with type 1 diabetes
- Young people experience mental health
- Adaptation to asthma in children
- Improving the healthcare for adolescents living with HIV
- Managing food allergies in primary and secondary school
- Care for children with complex care needs
- Family-based asthma self-management care
- Caring for adolescents with cystic fibrosis
- Independence of children with congenital heart disease
- Psychological issues related to taking care of children with congenital heart disease
- Transition readiness in Adolescents with neurofibromatosis type 1
- Care for adolescents with chronic conditions
Pediatric intensive care unit(PICU)
Critically ill children are unique and of high specialization. The pediatric intensive care unit is, therefore, essential in offering invaluable resources to critically ill children and young people.
Pediatric intensive care nursing explores issues specific to nursing practice in a specialist pediatric intensive care unit. If you wish to write a research paper on PICU topics below will guide you on specific topics to choose from
- Management of critically ill children
- Resuscitation
- Care of a child with respiratory illness
- Care of children with cardiac disease
- Care of a child with thermal injury
- Care of a pediatric cancer patient
- Transportation of a critically ill child
- Care in the bereavement in the PICU
- Care of the family of a PICU patient
- Pain management in intensive care
- Safety of children in intensive care
Perinatal nursing research topics
Perinatal nursing care involves caring for women during pregnancy, birth, and post-partum. Perinatal nurses also care for infants from the beginning of pregnancy throughout the first month of the infant’s life.
As a perinatal nurse, you are required to offer help to pregnant women throughout the pregnancy by educating them on how to take care of their unborn child and how to have a healthy pregnancy. You will also work on labor and delivery units, antepartum and postpartum units in hospitals
In your career as a perinatal nurse, you will interact and collaborate with obstetricians, perinatal nurse practitioners, and midwives on several occasions. Perinatal nursing is broad and there are many options to choose great pediatric nursing research topics
- Pregnancy weight gain
- Substance use during pregnancy
- Mental health during pregnancy
- Breastfeeding
- Visitor interactions during childbirth
- Precautions when birth happens at home
- Beliefs of cord-cutting
- Planned home birth
- Infant management during labor
- Delayed cord clamping during homebirth
- Advances in infants born management
- Maternal perinatal depression
- Perinatal mortality
- Perception of birthing place in relation to childbirth risks
- Optimal cord clamping
- Comparison between waterbirth and hospital birth
Evidence-based practice nursing topics 2022
- Economic aspects of euthanasia
- Health issues of immigrant men
- The social effects of the opioid
- Nursing adaptation of e-health
- Improving diversity in nursing
- Women’s health
- Gender pay in nursing
- Nutrition
- Importance of vaccination in pregnancy
- Life-threatening conditions and emergency care
- Reducing medication error
- Respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) in children
- Care of the newborn
- Preventing surgical area infection
- Vaccination uptake
- Delirium prevention
Pediatric nursing dermatology research topics
Pediatric dermatology specializes in treating skin, hair, and nails. As a nurse interested in this area, you will encounter children and young people who have various dermatological problems. The diversity in this field provides you with many options for your research paper on pediatric dermatology nursing research topics
- Psoriasis in children
- Causes and treatment of eczema
- Atopic dermatitis development in children
- Acquired nail disorders
- Nail dystrophy: causes of distortion and dermatophyte fungal infection
- Subungual hematoma: black nail discoloration following an injury
- Congenital nail disorders
- Pediatric contact dermatitis
- Burn treatment
- Management and treatment of vitiligo
- Hair and skin changes during pregnancy
- Treatment and management of acne
- Herpes zosters
- Scabies
- Birthmarks
- Vascular birthmarks
Pediatric cardiac nursing anesthetist research topics
As a cardiac nurse anesthetist, your job is to take care of children undergoing cardiac surgery and any other cardiovascular procedures. You get to meet your patient and their family before every procedure in order to explain to them what to expect during and after the procedure.
Pediatric anesthesiology is at higher risk than adult anesthesia mainly because of the difference in the children’s physiology. There are many topics you can choose from if you wish to write your research paper on pediatric anesthesia
- Blood loss assessment in pediatric surgery
- Anesthetic management of a child with MERREF syndrome
- Effects of general anesthesia on pulmonary function in children with cystic fibrosis
- Pediatric anesthesia patient safety resources
- Cardiovascular events
- Neurotoxicity
- Medication errors
- Anesthesia risk complications due to obesity
- Non-operating room anesthesia sedation
- Airway events
- Communication errors
- Anesthesia and associated diseases
- Special characteristics of pediatric anesthesia
- Techniques in pediatric vascular surgery
- Pediatric anesthesia stimulation
- Pharmacology of drugs used n children
Lactation consultancy topics
Being that as a nurse you help women during, through, and during delivery, you will highly likely also assist them through the breastfeeding process. Breastfeeding or breast milk is crucial in providing nutrition necessary to aid the growth and development of a child as, well as generate multiple benefits for both mother and child.
Breastfeeding or not to breastfeed is a rather debatable subject and if this is an area that interests you, you can opt to write a research paper on the various topics available.
- An approach to the process of breastfeeding
- Similarities and differences between human and animal milk
- Importance of breastfeeding on brain development
- Support for breastfeeding
- Breastfeeding and the reduced risks of breast cancer
- Impacts of exclusive breastfeeding
- Constraints to exclusive breastfeeding
- First-time mother and breastfeeding
- Exclusive breastfeeding to HIV-positive mothers
- View of exclusive breastfeeding in developed countries
- Emotional experiences of exclusive breastfeeding teenage pregnancies and exclusive breastfeeding
- Breastfeeding and nutrition
- Impacts on Intention to return to work on breastfeeding
Pediatric radiology nursing research topics
There are emerging topics that you may find interesting in this pediatric sub-specialty namely: acute bone fracture and joint imaging, fetal spine and airway imaging, and pediatric neurology. If you are competitive and interested in this area, below are topics you can select for your pediatric nursing research topics
- Risk calculator to predict hyperactivity disorder in very preterm infants
- Hydrocephalus imaging
- Pulmonary infections imaging
- MRI scanning
- Radiotherapy treatment planning
- Possible health risks of pediatric imaging
- Neuroprotection and central nervous system injury
Pediatric orthopedics nursing research topics
As an orthopedic nurse, the chances of crossing paths with an orthopedic patient are fairly strong. You get the opportunity a child who is in extreme pain from an injury, trauma, or a long-term condition or illness.
In this article, you will find different topics that you can choose for your research paper on pediatric orthopedics.
- Limb length deformity
- Spine deformity
- Growth plate disorders
- Treatment and management of Scoliosis
- Skeletal dysplasia
- Neuromuscular
- Pediatric joint disorders
- Obesity and weight management
- Exercise and sports medicine
- Pain management
- Relationship between stretching and athletic injury prevention
- Impact of music therapy on patient’s post-elective orthopedic surgery
- Hip and knee replacement recovery
- Diagnosis and treatment of plantar fasciitis
- Massage therapy
- Factors influencing discharge after total hip or knee replacement
Pediatric rheumatology nursing research topics
With regards to the care of children or young people with rheumatic illnesses, you are responsible for taking care of the patient as well as their family. You inform the family n the need for hygiene while administering injections and the use of analgesic methods
- Zika virus
- Treatment of Lyme disease
- Pain management
- Spinal disorders
- Fibromyalgia
- Diagnosis and treatment of lupus
- Pediatric systematic lupus erythematosus
- Assessment of health status and quality of life
- Issues in pediatric rheumatology
- Physiology and immune system dysfunction
Pediatric surgical nursing topics
Children’s anatomical, emotional, physiological, and surgical conditions are unique compared to those of adults. As a pediatric surgical nurse, you will not only b there for the patient but for the family as well.
Perioperative care of pediatrics targets the specific condition that affects them and, a detailed birth history, development, immunization, and medical conditions form part of the preoperative assessment. Topics below are specific under pediatric surgery that you can discuss for your research paper.
- Anorectal malformation surgery
- Retrospective analysis of pancreas operation in children
- Enhanced recovery after surgery in children
- Review of the modern surgical management
- Minimally invasive pancreas surgery
- Management of pediatric achalasia
- Sutureless closure
- Importance of tongue-tie in infants
- Diaphragmatic hernia
- Pediatric surgery in low-income regions
- Surgical outcomes of infants born with gastroschisis
- Surgical outcome of infants born with posterior urethra valves
Pediatric issues in nursing
As a medical practitioner involved in pediatrics, you have the responsibility of taking care of a sick child. You should protect them from dangers such as; congenital defects, perinatal injuries infections, malnutrition, trauma, and violence among other things.
As a pediatric nurse, the care and welfare of pediatric patients from fetal life, through the perinatal and neonatal period, infancy, childhood, and adolescence, until the transitional age to adults will be your area of specialty. You will encounter various issues faced by sick children waiting for a solution. Below are issued in pediatric nursing
- Genetic disorders
- Prenatal diagnosis
- Prematurity
- Trauma
- Neonatal physiology
- Bullying
- Childhood obesity
- Chronic illnesses
- Prescription drug abuse
- Depression among the youth
- Abdominal pain in children
- Child sexual abuse
- Alcoholism in adolescents
- Child abuse
- Sexual abuse among homeless adolescents
- Suicidal behaviors among homeless adolescents
- Drug abuse among homeless adolescent
- Treatment of sexually abuses children and adolescents
- Nursing care for emotionally abused children and adolescents
Bottom line
Pediatric nursing is a broad field with various sub-specialties. The diversity within this field of study presents you with many areas to choose pediatric nursing research topics for your paper. What is crucial to note while narrowing down your topic is the availability of research material and your area of interest.
A good research paper is essential as it will determine success or failure in your grade and this will directly affect your graduation. Choose a topic that you are passionate about and one that is relevant to your area of study.