title: Good two-year outcome for parents whose infants were admitted to a neonatal intensive care unit.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To evaluate the psychological functioning in parents whose infants were admitted to a neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) over the first 2 years of the infant's life.
  
  
  METHODS
  Prospective 2-year follow-up study of a random selection of NICU and control families. At baseline, 9 months, and 2 years, all parents received a clinical interview. Infants underwent a pediatric examination and Bayley II neurodevelopmental assessment at 2 years. Psychological distress is defined as having one or more of the following criteria: any psychiatric diagnosis on the Mini-International Neuropsychiatric Interview at 2 years; Edinburgh Post Natal Depression Scale score more than 12.5 at 2 years; Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale score more than 11.0 at 2 years, receiving treatment with antidepressants/psychotherapy/counselling over the previous 15 months.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Overall, 300 families of infants admitted to a NICU and 120 control families were approached to take part in the study. There was no difference in psychological distress in NICU parents (30.8%) vs control parents (28.2%). In fathers, there was no relationship between psychological distress and infant development measured using the Bayley II. In mothers, there was a relationship between psychological distress and the child's mental development, which was most significant in infants with severe developmental delay.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  There are no significant long-term negative psychological effects on parents whose infants were admitted to a NICU. Should interventions for parents be offered, they should focus on mothers whose infants are likely to have significant mental health development problems whether or not their infant is admitted to a NICU.
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychological Medicine, University of Otago, Christchurch, New Zealand. Electronic address: roger.mulder@otago.ac.nz.
authors.forename: Roger T
authors.initials: RT
authors.lastname: Mulder
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychology, University of Canterbury, Christchurch, New Zealand.
authors.forename: Janet D
authors.initials: JD
authors.lastname: Carter
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychological Medicine, University of Otago, Christchurch, New Zealand.
authors.forename: Christopher M A
authors.initials: CM
authors.lastname: Frampton
authors.affiliation: Department of Paediatrics, University of Otago, Christchurch, New Zealand.
authors.forename: Brian A
authors.initials: BA
authors.lastname: Darlow
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D002658:Developmental Disabilities / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000523:psychology; D005260:Female; D005865:Gestational Age; D006801:Humans; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D007232:Infant, Newborn, Diseases / Q000523:psychology* / Q000628:therapy; D007363:Intensive Care Units, Neonatal / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D007406:Interview, Psychological; D008297:Male; D009483:Neuropsychological Tests; D010290:Parents / Q000523:psychology*; D011569:Psychiatric Status Rating Scales; D013315:Stress, Psychological / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000209:etiology; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires