PTSD and psychological distress in Icelandic parents of chronically ill children: Does social support have an effect on parental distress?

Abstract

The purpose of the study was to investigate psychological distress and the prevalence of PTSD among Icelandic parents of chronically ill children, and the potential effects of social support on distress, at two points in time. The Impact on Family scale (IFS), the Trauma Symptom Checklist (TSC), the Harvard Trauma Questionnaire (HTQ) and the Crisis Support Scale (CSS) were completed by 105 parents of children with various diseases (69 mothers and 36 fathers). Despite the heterogeneity of the sample in terms of disease type, PTSD was present in 13.2% of the parents and an additional 28.6% had subclinical PTSD. Time since diagnosis, length of hospitalizations and disease-related daily care predicted 40% of the HTQ total score.

Child Asthma and Change in Elevated Depressive Symptoms Among Mothers of Children of a Birth Cohort from Quebec

“…Of particular interest is the role that caring for a child with chronic health problems may play. Indeed, some studies show an association between child chronic illnesses, handicaps, or retarded growth and presence of maternal psychological distress (Gudmundsdóttir, Elklit, & Gudmundsdóttir, 2006;Patiño-Fernández et al, 2008) or maternal depressive symptoms (Silver, Bauman, & Weiss, 1999;O'Brien et al, 2004;Kashikar-Zuck, 2008), while others did not find any association (Gowen et al, 1989;Manuel et al, 2003). Studies indicate that the severity of maternal depressive symptoms is associated with the extent of functional limitations and the degree of dependence of the child on the mother but not necessarily with the nature of the handicap (Breslau, Staruch, & Mortimer, 1982;Silver, Bauman, & Weiss, 1999;Yilmaz et al, 2010).…”

Rede e apoio social de famílias de crianças com doença crônica: revisão integrativa

“…Ao analisar os efeitos do apoio social para os pais no momento do diagnóstico da doença crônica na criança, estudo irlandês (6) revelou que o apoio recebido pelos pais era insuficiente e que o momento do diagnóstico é impactante e desencadeia aflição. Além disso, mostrou que os pais mais expostos a estressores, como diagnóstico recente, longos períodos de internação, cuidados diários com a criança e despesas financeiras devem receber mais apoio social.…”

“…Além disso, mostrou que os pais mais expostos a estressores, como diagnóstico recente, longos períodos de internação, cuidados diários com a criança e despesas financeiras devem receber mais apoio social. O estudo concluiu que o sofrimento psíquico dos pais não é um resultado real da ameaça de vida trazida pela doença e sim resultado das mudanças imprevisíveis que a doença traz para a família, tendo maior efeito nas interrupções das suas atuais rotinas e atividades do dia a dia (6) . Outro estudo (7) avaliou o apoio social das famílias de crianças com tumor de cérebro no momento do diagnóstico e em intervalos de 6, 12 e 24 meses pós-diagnóstico.…”

Family Support in Pediatric Palliative Care: How Are Families Impacted by their Children's Illnesses?

“…Higher scores indicate better healthrelated quality of life. Eighteen parents did not complete the PedsQL because their children did not fall in the appropriate age range (2)(3)(4)(5)(6)(7)(8)(9)(10)(11)(12)(13)(14)(15)(16)(17)(18).…”

“…Another study of 115 Icelandic parents of chronically ill children used the 24-item IOF scale and found that greater IOF scores were associated with more severe illness, more hospitalizations, and longer hospitalizations. 8 Although these studies provide valuable insights, they focus on chronically ill children, not children with life-threatening illnesses. Therefore, it is unclear whether parents of children with life-limiting illnesses perceive the impact of their children's illnesses differently and that information could be used to develop and refine pediatric palliative care programs.…”