Parenting Children With a Cleft Lip With or Without Palate or a Visible Infantile Hemangioma: A Cross-Sectional Study of Distress and Parenting Stress.

Abstract

Objective:Parents of children with a medical condition and a visible difference can experience challenging situations. We evaluated distress and parenting stress in parents of children with a cleft lip with or without cleft palate (CL±P) or a visible infantile hemangioma (IH).Setting:This cross-sectional study took place in an academic medical hospital in Rotterdam, the Netherlands.Participants:Three-hundred nine parents (mean age = 40.30, 56.00% mothers) of children with CL±P and 91 parents (mean age = 36.40, 58.24% mothers) of children with IH.Main Outcome Measures:The Dutch version of the Parenting Stress Index – Short Form and the subscales Anxiety, Depression, and Hostility of the Symptom Checklist – 90.Results:One sample t tests and mixed linear modeling were used. On average, parents of children with CL±P and of children with IH showed significantly lower parenting stress compared to normative data. Anxiety was significantly lower in parents of children with CL±P than that in the norm group. Visibility of the condition was not related to distress or parenting stress. Child behavioral problems were positively related to parenting stress, depression, and hostility.Conclusions:Parents of children with CL±P and IH report less distress and parenting stress compared to the norm. On average, these parents seem well adjusted. A practical implication is to monitor parents of children with behavioral problems.