Posttraumatic growth in mothers after infant admission to neonatal intensive care unit

Abstract

Hospitalization in neonatal intensive care units (NICUs) is stressful and traumatic for mothers (1), even in the absence of clinical or pathological concerns (2). Several studies involving mothers of infants hospitalized in NICU identifi ed diff erent sources of parental stress, defi ned as the physical and psychological aspects of a situation that impose demands on individuals (1, 3, 4). High stress is an important risk factor for poor parent-infant relationships during early childhood and has long-term negative outcomes (5). Research indicates that parents whose infants have been admitted to NICU experience emotional reactions such as guilt, depression, fear, anxiety, acute stress disorder, etc. (6-9).