Association among postpartum posttraumatic stress disorder, family coping, neurodevelopment, and language development in high-risk infants: a retrospective study.

BACKGROUND

A high-risk infant (HRI) is a child whose fetal, neonatal, and infant development is impacted by adverse factors that may cause cognitive, sensory, behavioral, or language defects. The complex situation in the treatment process is a continuous challenge and stressor for parents. If parents fail to take appropriate coping styles, it will have an adverse impact on the health of parents and the growth and development of children. The purpose of this study was to explore the impact of clinical characteristics, postpartum posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), and family coping on the neurodevelopment and language development of HRIs as a reference for targeted intervention.

METHODS

This study retrospectively recruited 211 children who were hospitalized in the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) of Suzhou Kowloon Hospital from January 2018 to December 2021. HRI and their mother were interviewed by telephone with general information questionnaire, Perinatal Post-traumatic Stress Disorder Questionnaire, medical coping modes questionnaire, Bayley Scales of Infant Development the Early Language Milestone Scale to investigate HRI and their mothers; Logistic regression was used to analyze the relationship between HRI mothers' emotions and family coping with neurodevelopment and language development.

RESULTS

The neurodevelopmental scores of HRIs differed according to gestational week of delivery, birth weight, and disease diagnosis. The language development scores of HRIs differed according to gestational week of delivery, birth weight, disease diagnosis, and maternal education. Multiple stepwise regression analysis showed that the neurodevelopmental scores were affected by gestational week of delivery, postpartum PTSD score, and family coping. Logistic regression analysis showed that the language development scores were affected by maternal education and neurodevelopmental level. The correlation analysis showed that the postpartum PTSD scores were negatively correlated with family coping, neurodevelopment, and language development, and that family coping was positively correlated with the neurodevelopment and language development scores (P<0.05).

CONCLUSIONS

The neurodevelopment and language development of HRIs were affected by the gestational week of delivery, maternal education, the child's birth weight, and disease diagnosis. NICU wards can promote the healthy development of HRIs by providing mothers with targeted health education concerning the child's condition, postpartum PTSD, and family coping strategies.