Mothers' and fathers' reports of stress in families of infants with and without single-suture craniosynostosis.

OBJECTIVE

To compare relative levels of stress reported by mothers and fathers in families containing infants with and without single-suture craniosynostosis.

DESIGN

Case-control study.

PARTICIPANTS

Mothers and fathers of 246 infants with recently diagnosed single-suture craniosynostosis and 253 frequency-matched control infants completed the Parenting Stress Index just prior to their infant's cranioplastic surgery. Family demographic information and mothers' ratings of the severity of their child's single-suture craniosynostosis were obtained.

RESULTS

Average Parent Domain scores for parents of infants with single-suture craniosynostosis differed little from those reported by parents of control infants; however, Child Domain scores among parents of infants with single-suture craniosynostosis were higher on some subscales, primarily related to unexpected infant health and appearance issues. In both groups, fathers reported higher Child Domain stress than mothers, and mothers reported higher Parent Domain stress than fathers. Case mothers reported greater stress if they perceived their child's condition as more noticeable to others.

CONCLUSIONS

Prior to cases' cranioplastic surgery, parents of children with and without single-suture craniosynostosis reported similar levels of stress in relation to their parenting roles and the behavioral characteristics of their infants. Visibility of condition should be considered a risk for increased stress for mothers of infants with single-suture craniosynostosis. Stress differences between mothers and fathers were far more discernible than those associated with the presence or absence of single-suture craniosynostosis.