The psychological impact of pediatric bacterial meningitis on the family.
Twenty-eight families participated in a prospective study of family coping with childhood bacterial meningitis. Most of the parents were seen by physicians and nursing staff as exhibiting anxiety during the first week of treatment, and many mothers later reported their fear for the child's life. Depressive behavior was also commonly noted in mothers by physicians; however, both mothers and fathers were generally seen as cooperating with staff and communicating well with them. Most of the families were rated as coping well with the diagnosis and treatment by physicians, nurses and psychosocial staff. Nineteen families participated in a follow-up assessment 1 to 2 years after diagnosis. Coping was found to be relatively stable over time, and mothers' coping at the follow-up interview was significantly correlated with their coping at diagnosis. Most of them raised concerns about residual damage and fear of life-threatening illness. There were no significant differences between families who had received a psychological intervention and those who had not. Careful monitoring of parental knowledge and perceptions was recommended to prevent later problems.
D001007:Anxiety; D001519:Behavior; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D003863:Depression / Q000209:etiology; D005190:Family; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D008297:Male; D008581:Meningitis / Q000523:psychology*; D011446:Prospective Studies