Subjective burden in mothers of speech-impaired children.
OBJECTIVE
Evaluation of perceived subjective burden in mothers of speech-impaired children against the presence or absence of an emotional disorder.


METHODS
89 mothers (age 33.3 +/- 5.5 years, range: 19.6-43.8 years) of 89 preschool children (23 girls, 66 boys, age: 3.9 +/- 1.5 years, range: 1.6- 7.1 years) with specific speech impairment were investigated. German versions of the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS) and the Burden Scale for Family Caregivers (BSFC) were applied.


RESULTS
11% of the mothers met criteria for a depressive disorder (normal controls: 2.5%; p = 0.008). Twenty-eight percent of the mothers met criteria for anxiety disorders (normal controls: 9.6%; p = 0.000). The HADS depression subscore and the BSFC correlate with r = 0.75. The HADS anxiety subscore and the BSFC correlate with r = 0.59.


CONCLUSIONS
Results suggest the need for routine clinical assessment of mothers' well-being when their children are affected by speech impairment.
Wink
Michaela
M
Department of Phoniatrics and Pedaudiology, Erlangen University Hospital, Erlangen, Germany.
Rosanowski
Frank
F
Hoppe
Ulrich
U
Eysholdt
Ulrich
U
Grässel
Elmar
E
D000328:Adult; D001008:Anxiety Disorders / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000209:etiology*; D017028:Caregivers / Q000523:psychology; D002675:Child, Preschool; D003866:Depressive Disorder / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000209:etiology*; D019988:Children with Disabilities; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D009034:Mother-Child Relations; D009035:Mothers / Q000523:psychology*; D012649:Self Concept; D012647:Self-Assessment; D012720:Severity of Illness Index; D013064:Speech Disorders / Q000523:psychology*; D013315:Stress, Psychological / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000209:etiology*; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires