Historical Perspectives: Unsilencing Suffering: Promoting Maternal Mental Health in Neonatal Intensive Care Units

Abstract

Mothers of infants in the NICU suffer higher rates of psychological distress, anxiety, and depression compared with the general population. Often, their mental health concerns remain underidentified and undertreated, which can have deleterious effects on the offspring, both in short-term outcomes while in the NICU as well as long-term neurodevelopmental and behavioral outcomes. In this review, we present an overview of existing empirical evidence about how maternal mental health affects the health of infants, special considerations regarding the mental health needs of NICU mothers, and the findings about existing and developing interventions to address mental health concerns in this vulnerable population.

Parental stress and depression in the NICU: an analysis of psychosocial evaluations, infant factors, and stress-related salivary biomarkers

“…Interventions geared to prevention and mitigation of parental stress in NICUs include group and individual therapy, culturally sensitive and patient-and family-centered care, telehealth, a 'family-friendly' NICU architecture, and psychosocial support training of health professionals 16,26,[54][55][56] . Alleviating maternal stress can improve the ability of mothers to bond with their infants in the NICU, improve mental health, and ultimately optimize neurodevelopmental and behavioral outcomes of offspring [57][58]…”

UTI neonatal e o sofrimento da família

“…É fundamental reconhecer a importância da saúde mental materna durante operíodo perinatal e implementar estratégias eficazes de triagem e intervenção, especialmente durante a estadia na UTIN. Essas ações podem ter um impacto positivo nas mães, nos bebês prematuros e no desenvolvimento saudável das crianças(Ouyang et al, 2020).…”