title: Seeing Their Children in Pain: Symptoms of Posttraumatic Stress Disorder in Mothers of Children with an Anomaly Requiring Surgery at Birth.
abstract: Objective Assess the presence of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms in mothers of newborns requiring early surgery. Study Design Mothers of newborns operated on for a congenital anomaly underwent a semi-structured interview on their experience 6 months postpartum. Interviews were audiotaped, transcribed verbatim, and analyzed for symptoms of the three major criteria of PTSD: re-experiencing, avoidance, and heightened arousal. Results A total of 120 mothers took part in the study; their children were affected by one of the following congenital anomaly: esophageal atresia (n = 29); congenital diaphragmatic hernia (n = 38); midgut malformations (n = 38); and abdominal wall defects (n = 15). Two mothers did not show any symptoms; 12 mothers (10%) had one posttraumatic symptom, 77 (64.2%) had two, and 29 (24.2%) had three. Overall, 106 mothers (88.4%) presented at least two symptoms. Conclusion PTSD can be considered a useful model to describe and comprehend mothers' reactions in this specific population. Preventive interventions and dedicated follow-up program should be offered to these families.
authors.affiliation: Unit of Clinical Psychology, Department of Neuroscience and Neurorehabilitation, Bambino Gesù Children's Hospital, Rome, Italy.
authors.forename: Lucia
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Aite
authors.affiliation: Unit of Clinical Psychology, Department of Neuroscience and Neurorehabilitation, Bambino Gesù Children's Hospital, Rome, Italy.
authors.forename: Francesca
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Bevilacqua
authors.affiliation: Department of Pediatric Surgery, Bambino Gesù Children's Hospital, Rome, Italy.
authors.forename: Antonio
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Zaccara
authors.affiliation: Centro dati, Fondazione GINEMA, Rome, Italy.
authors.forename: Edoardo
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: La Sala
authors.affiliation: Unit of Clinical Psychology, Department of Neuroscience and Neurorehabilitation, Bambino Gesù Children's Hospital, Rome, Italy.
authors.forename: Simonetta
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Gentile
authors.affiliation: Department of Neonatal Medicine and Surgery, Bambino Gesù Children's Hospital, Rome, Italy.
authors.forename: Pietro
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Bagolan
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000013:Congenital Abnormalities / Q000145:classification / Q000601:surgery; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D007558:Italy; D008297:Male; D009035:Mothers / Q000523:psychology*; D049590:Postpartum Period / Q000523:psychology*; D036301:Qualitative Research; D013313:Stress Disorders, Post-Traumatic / Q000453:epidemiology*; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires