The effect of extremely preterm birth on attachment organization in late adolescence

Hallin, Anne-Li; Bengtsson, Hans; Frostell, Anneli; Stjernqvist, Karin

doi:10.1111/j.1365-2214.2011.01236.x

Cited by 13 publications

(6 citation statements)

References 41 publications

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“…The reason may be that EPB subjects are vulnerable in more subtle ways (27), which is consistent with reports of insecure dismissive attachment (28), disruptions in parent-child relationships (29), internalising problems (13), as well as psychological and social problems (30) and increased vulnerability for psychiatric disorders (26). Apparently, EPB children and adolescents may adapt well to life, but our findings support previous suggestions that their efforts to keep up with peers may be at a mental cost (28,29). When they reach adulthood, they are expected to cope and live independently despite their various shortcomings (9,14).…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 89%

“…These results were partly in contrast to our findings that even the healthy EPB subjects reported deteriorating mental health and lower social functioning compared to those born at term when entering adulthood. The reason may be that EPB subjects are vulnerable in more subtle ways , which is consistent with reports of insecure dismissive attachment , disruptions in parent–child relationships , internalising problems , as well as psychological and social problems and increased vulnerability for psychiatric disorders . Apparently, EPB children and adolescents may adapt well to life, but our findings support previous suggestions that their efforts to keep up with peers may be at a mental cost .…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 89%

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Health-related quality of life may deteriorate from adolescence to young adulthood after extremely preterm birth

et al. 2015

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Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 89%

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 89%

Health-related quality of life may deteriorate from adolescence to young adulthood after extremely preterm birth

et al. 2015

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“…The fact that extremely premature infants are very different from normal newborns in appearance and behaviour can also impair the formation of parent–child bonds [8]. Early impairments in the interaction between extremely premature infants and their parents, as well as parental posttraumatic stress after the child’s birth, may have long-term adverse consequences for the attachment relationship between parent and child [10, 11].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Psychosocial support for parents of extremely preterm infants in neonatal intensive care: a qualitative interview study

Bry

Wigert

2019

BMC Psychol

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BackgroundExtremely premature infants (those born before 28 weeks’ gestational age) are highly immature, requiring months of care at a neonatal intensive care unit (NICU). For parents, their child’s grave medical condition and prolonged hospitalization are stressful and psychologically disruptive. This study aimed at exploring the needs of psychosocial support of parents of extremely premature infants, and how the NICU as an organization and its staff meets or fails to meet these needs.MethodSixteen open-ended interviews were conducted with 27 parents after their infant’s discharge from the NICU. Inductive content analysis was performed.ResultsFour themes were identified: Emotional support (with subthemes Empathic treatment by staff, Other parents as a unique source of support, Unclear roles of the various professions); Feeling able to trust the health care provider; Support in balancing time spent with the infant and other responsibilities; Privacy.Parents of extremely premature infants needed various forms of emotional support at the NICU, including support from staff, professional psychological help and/or companionship with other patients’ parents. Parents were highly variable in their desire to discuss their emotional state with staff. The respective roles of nursing staff, social workers and psychologists in supporting parents emotionally and identifying particularly vulnerable parents appeared unclear. Parents also needed to be able to maintain a solid sense of trust in the NICU and its staff. Poor communication with and among staff, partly due to staff discontinuity, damaged trust. Parents struggled with perceived pressure from staff to be at the hospital more than they could manage and with the limited privacy of the NICU.ConclusionsThe complex and individual psychosocial needs of parents of extremely preterm infants present many challenges for the NICU and its staff. Increasing staffing and improving nurses’ competence in addressing psychosocial aspects of neonatal care would help both nurses and families. Clarifying the roles of different professions in supporting parents and developing their teamwork would lessen the burden on nurses. Communicating with parents about their needs and informing them early in their NICU stay about available support would be essential in helping them cope with their infant’s hospitalization.

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“…The mothers and fathers of the preterm born young adults rated themselves higher on supportive parenting [26]. The question arises whether a delayed developmental trajectory and transition into adulthood is caused by physical or cognitive problems or by a different or overprotective parental attachment resulting from preterm birth [12, 26]. Future research should further investigate the underlying mechanisms.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Psychosocial developmental trajectory of a cohort of young adults born very preterm and/or with a very low birth weight in the Netherlands

Pal

Maurice‐Stam

Grootenhuis

et al. 2019

J Patient Rep Outcomes

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Background The achievement of age-specific developmental milestones in youth is of great importance to the adjustment in adult life. Young adults who were born preterm, might go through a different developmental trajectory and transition into adulthood than their peers. This study aimed to compare the psychosocial developmental trajectory of young adults who were born preterm with peers from the general population. Young adults from the POPS (Project On Preterm and Small for gestational age infants) cohort study, born in 1983 in the Netherlands, completed online the Course of Life Questionnaire (CoLQ - achievement of psychosocial developmental milestones) at 28 years of age. Analysis of variance by group, age and gender was performed to test differences on the CoLQ scale scores between the POPS-group and 211 peers (25–30 years) from the general population (Ref-group). Differences on item level, representing the achievement of individual milestones, were analyzed with logistic regression analyses by group, age and gender. Results The POPS-group ( n = 300, 32,3% biased response) scored significantly lower than the Ref-group on the scales Psychosexual Development (effect size − 0.26, p < 0.01), Antisocial Behavior (ES − 0.44, p < 0.001) and Substance Use & Gambling (ES − 0.35, p < .001). A further exploration on item-level revealed, among others, that the POPS-group had their first boyfriend/girlfriend at later age, were more often single, misbehaved less at school and smoked, drank and gambled less than the Ref-group. On the scales Autonomy Development and Social Development no differences were found between the POPS-group and the Ref-group. Conclusions A relatively less vulnerable respondent group of young adults born preterm showed some psychosocial developmental trajectory delays and might benefit from support at teenage age. Because of the non-response bias, we hypothesize that the total group of young adults born preterm will show more severe psychosocial developmental problems.

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The effect of extremely preterm birth on attachment organization in late adolescence

Abstract: Because insecure attachment as well as prematurity may be considered as significant risk factors for developing psychopathology, they deserve careful attention in future research and clinical follow-ups.

Cited by 13 publications

References 41 publications

Health-related quality of life may deteriorate from adolescence to young adulthood after extremely preterm birth

Health-related quality of life may deteriorate from adolescence to young adulthood after extremely preterm birth

Psychosocial support for parents of extremely preterm infants in neonatal intensive care: a qualitative interview study

Psychosocial developmental trajectory of a cohort of young adults born very preterm and/or with a very low birth weight in the Netherlands

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