The association of parent behaviors, chronic pain, and psychological problems with venipuncture distress in infants: the Generation R study.
OBJECTIVE
To examine the association of parent behavior with infant distress during a potentially painful medical procedure. A second aim was to investigate the association of parent chronic pain and psychological problems with parent behavior and infant distress during the procedure.


METHODS
Population-based cohort study with both cross-sectional and prospective measurements.


METHODS
Video recordings of 275 parents and their 14-month-old infant undergoing venipuncture were coded with an observational instrument to yield measures of infant distress behaviors and parent behaviors, such as reassuring, showing empathy, praising, and distracting. Parent chronic pain and psychological problems were assessed through questionnaires.


RESULTS
Infants cried 58% of procedure duration. Parent reassuring occurred 34% of procedure duration, and parent distracting occurred 37% of procedure duration. Infant distress was positively related to parent reassuring and negatively related to parent praising. Parent chronic pain was related to increased parent distracting but not to parent reassuring. Parent psychological problems were not associated with parent behavior and infant distress.


CONCLUSIONS
Parent behavior rather than psychological traits is related to increased venipuncture distress in young infants. This finding suggests that the focus should be on interventions based on behavior modification.
Wolff
Noor J
NJ
Generation R Study Group, Erasmus University Medical Center, Rotterdam, The Netherlands.
Darlington
Anne-Sophie E
AS
Hunfeld
Joke A M
JA
Verhulst
Frank C
FC
Jaddoe
Vincent W V
VW
Moll
Henriette A
HA
Hofman
Albert
A
Passchier
Jan
J
Tiemeier
Henning
H
D000223:Adaptation, Psychological; D000328:Adult; D001007:Anxiety / Q000523:psychology; D002908:Chronic Disease; D015331:Cohort Studies; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D003448:Crying; D003863:Depression / Q000523:psychology; D004645:Empathy; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D018730:Infant Behavior; D008297:Male; D009426:Netherlands; D010146:Pain / Q000523:psychology*; D016487:Parenting / Q000523:psychology*; D010555:Personality Inventory; D018962:Phlebotomy / Q000523:psychology*; D011446:Prospective Studies; D012057:Reinforcement, Verbal; D013001:Somatoform Disorders / Q000523:psychology; D055815:Young Adult