Zheng Wenjing, Chotipanvithayakul Rassamee, Ingviya Thammasin, Guo Fang
Department of Pediatrics, The Second Affiliated Hospital of Kunming Medical University, Kunming, Yunnan, China.
Department of Epidemiology, Faculty of Medicine, Prince of Songkla University, Hat Yai, Songkhla, Thailand.
Glob Health Action. 2025 Dec;18(1):2491848. doi: 10.1080/16549716.2025.2491848. Epub 2025 May 2.
Preterm parents face higher risks of postpartum depression and anxiety, affecting bonding and infant development. Sensory stimulation shows promise, but its long-term impact on parental mental health needs further study.
This study aimed to evaluate whether a home-based integrated sensory stimulation program, administered to preterm infants by their parents, could alleviate parental mental health issues and enhance maternal bonding and parenting competence.
The program, including tactile, auditory, visual, gustatory, and olfactory stimuli, was assessed in a block-randomized controlled trial from November 2018 to January 2020. A total of 200 parents of preterm infants were recruited, and the intervention continued at home until the infants reached six months corrected age. Parents' depression and anxiety were assessed using validated scales at baseline, and at first, third, and sixth month follow-ups.
The intervention group included 98 parents, and the control group comprised 102 parents. At the six-month follow-up, the intervention group demonstrated significant improvements in maternal depression, state anxiety, and trait anxiety compared to the control group. In the mixed linear model, the intervention was associated with reductions in maternal trait anxiety (d =-2.18; 95% CI: -4.30, -0.06), paternal trait anxiety (d =-3.37; 95% CI: -5.62, -1.11) and state anxiety (d =-4.63; 95% CI: -7.00, -2.26).
The home-based integrated sensory stimulation program, when provided by parents to preterm infants, was effective in improving parents' mental health and can serve as an alternative treatment for postpartum depression and anxiety in parents of preterm infants at home.
早产婴儿的父母面临更高的产后抑郁和焦虑风险，这会影响亲子关系和婴儿发育。感觉刺激显示出一定前景，但其对父母心理健康的长期影响需要进一步研究。
本研究旨在评估由父母对早产婴儿实施的家庭综合感觉刺激项目是否能缓解父母的心理健康问题，并增强母婴联结和育儿能力。
该项目包括触觉、听觉、视觉、味觉和嗅觉刺激，于2018年11月至2020年1月在一项整群随机对照试验中进行评估。共招募了200名早产婴儿的父母，干预在家庭中持续进行，直到婴儿达到矫正年龄6个月。在基线以及第1、3和6个月随访时，使用经过验证的量表评估父母的抑郁和焦虑情况。
干预组包括98名父母，对照组包括102名父母。在6个月随访时，与对照组相比，干预组母亲的抑郁、状态焦虑和特质焦虑有显著改善。在混合线性模型中，干预与母亲特质焦虑的降低（d = -2.18；95%CI：-4.30，-0.06）、父亲特质焦虑的降低（d = -3.37；95%CI：-5.62，-1.11）和状态焦虑的降低（d = -4.63；95%CI：-7.00，-2.26）相关。
由父母对早产婴儿实施的家庭综合感觉刺激项目，在改善父母心理健康方面是有效的，可作为在家中对早产婴儿父母产后抑郁和焦虑的一种替代治疗方法。
