Doheny Kim K, Gardner Fumiyuki C, Ali Saher, Fronheiser Brittany J, Miller Claire J, Brelsford Gina M
Department of Neural and Behavioral Sciences, Penn State College of Medicine, Hershey, PA 17033, USA.
Department of Pediatrics, Penn State College of Medicine, Hershey, PA 17033, USA.
Children (Basel). 2025 May 22;12(6):660. doi: 10.3390/children12060660.
: Mothers of infants admitted to the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) experience significant stress, which can have lasting effects on mental health and parent-infant bonding. This mixed-methods study aimed to explore maternal stress response, coping, and resilience by examining physiological stress markers and maternal narratives. : A total of 28 mothers who had an infant hospitalized in the NICU within the past three years participated in a two-hour laboratory session, which included stress induction using the Trier Social Stress Test (TSST). Salivary cortisol (sCort) and heart rate variability (HRV) were measured to assess physiological responses. : Qualitative analysis of maternal narratives identified two distinct response patterns: an anger/trauma (AT) group ( = 7) and a gratitude/optimism (GO) group ( = 6), with the remaining 15 mothers classified as a mixed (M) group. GO mothers exhibited significantly higher cortisol reactivity during recovery compared to AT mothers ( < 0.01). While GO mothers had higher baseline HF-HRV, no significant between-group differences were found in HRV responses. : Findings suggest that maternal perception of NICU experiences is associated with distinct physiological stress response patterns, highlighting the importance of stress appraisal and coping in maternal well-being.
入住新生儿重症监护病房（NICU）的婴儿的母亲会经历巨大压力，这可能会对心理健康和母婴联结产生持久影响。这项混合方法研究旨在通过检查生理应激指标和母亲的叙述来探索母亲的应激反应、应对方式和恢复力。共有28名在过去三年内其婴儿在NICU住院的母亲参加了一个两小时的实验室环节，其中包括使用特里尔社会应激测试（TSST）进行应激诱导。测量唾液皮质醇（sCort）和心率变异性（HRV）以评估生理反应。对母亲叙述的定性分析确定了两种不同的反应模式：愤怒/创伤（AT）组（n = 7）和感恩/乐观（GO）组（n = 6），其余15名母亲归类为混合（M）组。与AT组母亲相比，GO组母亲在恢复过程中表现出显著更高的皮质醇反应性（p < 0.01）。虽然GO组母亲的基线高频HRV较高，但在HRV反应方面未发现组间显著差异。研究结果表明，母亲对NICU经历的认知与不同的生理应激反应模式相关，突出了应激评估和应对在母亲幸福感中的重要性。
