Relationship between social support and post-discharge mental health symptoms in mothers of preterm infants
Open accessAbstract
BACKGROUND: Social support is associated with decreased symptoms of postpartum mood and anxiety disorders (PMAD) in mothers of healthy infants, but less is known about social support and PMADs in mothers with preterm infants. The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship between social support and symptoms of PMADs reported by mothers in the months following hospital discharge of their preterm infant. METHODS: Mothers of infants less than 33 weeks gestational age were enrolled from neonatal intensive care units (NICU) at 6 sites. Mothers completed PMAD measures of depression, anxiety and post-traumatic stress approximately 3 months following their infant's discharge. Multivariable regression was used to evaluate relationships between social support and PMAD measures. RESULTS: Of 129 mothers, 1 in 5 reported clinically significant PMAD symptoms of: depression (24%), anxiety (19%), and post-traumatic stress (20%). Social support was strongly inversely associated with all 3 PMADs. Social support explained between 21% and 26% of the variance in depression, anxiety and post-traumatic stress symptoms. CONCLUSION: Increased social support may buffer PMAD symptoms in mothers of preterm infants after discharge. Research is needed to determine effective screening and interventions aimed at promoting social support for all parents during and following their infant's hospitalisation.
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Cites
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Patterns of psychological distress in mothers of preterm infants
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Sandnes, R., Le Floch, M., Riquin, E., Nocus, I., Müller, J. B., & Bacro, F. (2024) · Journal of Affective Disorders · doi:10.1016/j.jad.2024.03.154 · Cited by 57 · see citing works
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- Authors
- Haeusslein, L., Gano, D., Gay, C. L., Kriz, R. M., Bisgaard, R., Vega, M., Cormier, D. M., Joe, P., Walker, V., Kim, J. H., Lin, C., Sun, Y., & Franck, L. S.
- Affiliations
- University of California, San Francisco (US)
- Community Regional Medical Center (US)
- UCSF Benioff Children's Hospital (US)
- The Ohio State University (US)
- Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center (US)
- Kaiser Permanente (US)
- Corresponding author
- Franck, Linda S.
- ORCID
- Venue
- Journal of Reproductive and Infant Psychology
- Publisher
- Informa UK Limited
- Published
- 2021-09-29
- Volume
- 41
- Issue
- 3
- Pages
- 260-274
- ISSN
- 0264-6838 (ISSN-L)
- 1469-672X
- PMC
- PMC8960471
- OpenAlex
- W3204262296
- Cited by
- 21
- References
- 5
- Citations by year
- 2026: 6 · 2025: 4 · 2024: 4 · 2023: 5 · 2022: 1 · 2014: 1
- FWCI
- 2.17
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- green
- www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
- Locations
- Journal of Reproductive and Infant Psychology (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- PubMed Central (acceptedVersion)
- eScholarship (California Digital Library) (submittedVersion)
- Funders
- National Institute of Nursing Research of the National Institutes of Health (T32NR016920)
- Topics
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Public Health, Environmental and Occupational Health › Maternal Mental Health During Pregnancy and Postpartum
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Pediatrics, Perinatology and Child Health › Infant Development and Preterm Care
- Health Sciences › Health Professions › General Health Professions › Maternal and Neonatal Healthcare
- Keywords
- social support, preterm infants, maternal depression, maternal anxiety, post-traumatic stress, post-discharge mental health, neonatal intensive care, mothers of preterm infants
- MeSH terms
- Aftercare, Female, Humans, Infant, Infant, Newborn, Infant, Premature, Mental Health, Mothers, Patient Discharge, Puerperal Disorders, Social Support
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