Prenatally-counseled congenital diaphragmatic hernia parents exhibit positive well-being before and after surgical repair.
OBJECTIVE
The purpose of this paper was to examine the effect of prenatal counseling in the Advanced Fetal Care Center (AFCC) on the well-being of parents of infants with congenital diaphragmatic hernia (CDH).


METHODS
From 2008 through 2012, 26 mothers and fathers of surgically repaired CDH patients who received prenatal counseling at our institution, and 15 who received no prenatal counseling, each completed the Short-Form 36 version 1 (SF-36v1) at the appropriate time points: prenatal, two weeks, and six months post-surgery.


RESULTS
Parents in both groups did not differ by demographic characteristics. Patients who received prenatal counseling had significantly longer ventilatory time and length of stay (LOS) in the ICU and in the hospital compared to those who did not receive prenatal counseling (all P<.01). Mothers and fathers had similar SF-36v1 mental and physical component summary (MCS, PCS) post-surgery scores when compared by counseling status. Prenatal MCS scores for mothers and fathers (47 vs. 41; P=.24) were similar to those at six months post-surgery (47 vs. 47; P=.90).


CONCLUSIONS
When hospital LOS was controlled between groups stratified by AFCC counseling status, MCS scores were comparable prenatally and were sustained at six months post-surgery for both parents. These findings may reflect the support services parents received beginning in the prenatal period.
Department of Surgery, Boston Children's Hospital, Boston, MA.
Kate V
KV
Dennett
Department of Surgery, Boston Children's Hospital, Boston, MA.
Sarah
S
Tracy
Advanced Fetal Care Center, Boston Children's Hospital, Boston, MA.
Laurie
L
Oliver Taylor
Department of Anesthesia, Boston Children's Hospital, Boston, MA; Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA.
David
D
Zurakowski
Department of Surgery, Boston Children's Hospital, Boston, MA; Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA. Electronic address: catherine.chen@childrens.harvard.edu.
Catherine
C
Chen
D000328:Adult; D003376:Counseling; D005260:Female; D006304:Health Status; D065630:Hernias, Diaphragmatic, Congenital / Q000601:surgery*; D006801:Humans; D007902:Length of Stay; D008297:Male; D008603:Mental Health; D010290:Parents / Q000523:psychology*; D011446:Prospective Studies
Congenital diaphragmatic hernia; Parental well-being; Pediatric surgery; Prenatal counseling; SF-36