Higher Levels Of Parenting Stress Research Articles

Emotional and behavioral functioning of typically-developing sisters of children with autism spectrum disorder: The roles of ASD severity, parental stress, and marital status

BackgroundResearch has shown varied outcomes for typically-developing (TD) siblings of children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD), suggesting that some emotional and behavioral difficulties may occur only under specific conditions. In addition to characteristics of the children with ASD, family contextual factors may also predict sibling adjustment. MethodThis study examined parent marital status and parental stress as moderators of the relation between ASD siblings’ symptom severity and emotional and behavioral adjustment in 56 TD sisters via self- and parent-report. ResultsAt moderate and high levels of parental stress, TD sisters with siblings with relatively severe ASD symptomatology and with unmarried parents reported the highest levels of emotional and behavioral difficulties. Yet, TD sisters with siblings with relatively less severe ASD symptomatology and with unmarried parents reported the lowest levels of challenging behaviors and emotional symptoms. ConclusionsThese findings indicate that clinicians treating families of children with relatively severe ASD and unmarried parents should be particularly cognizant of the functioning of TD sisters.

Predictors of Post-concussive Symptoms in Young Children: Injury versus Non-injury Related Factors.

A notable minority of children will experience persistent post-concussive symptoms (PCS) following mild traumatic brain injury (mTBI), likely maintained by a combination of injury and non-injury related factors. Adopting a prospective longitudinal design, this study aimed to investigate the relative influence of child, family, and injury factors on both acute and persistent PCS in young children. Participants were 101 children aged 2-12 who presented to an Emergency Department, with either mTBI or minor bodily trauma (control). PCS were assessed at time of injury, 1 week, and 1, 2, and 3 months post-injury. Predictors included injury and demographic variables, premorbid child behavior, sleep hygiene, and parental stress. Random effects ordinal logistic regression models were used to analyze the relative influence of these predictors on PCS at early (acute - 1 week) and late (1-3 month) post-injury phases. Presence of mTBI was a stronger predictor of PCS in the early [odds ratio (OR)=18.2] compared with late (OR=7.3) post-injury phase. Older age at injury and pre-existing learning difficulties were significant predictors of PCS beyond 1 month post-injury. Family factors, including higher levels of parental stress, higher socio-economic status, and being of Anglo-Saxon descent, consistently predicted greater PCS. Injury characteristics were significantly associated with PCS for 3 months following mTBI but the association weakened over time. On the other hand, pre-existing child and family factors displayed an increasingly strong association with PCS over time. Follow-up for these "at-risk" children which also addresses family stress may minimize longer-term complications. (JINS, 2016, 22, 793-803).

Living with children with autistic spectrum condition: parental stress and the impact upon family functioning.

Introduction. Parenting a child with Autistic Spectrum Condition (ASC) is both practically and emotionally challenging. The condition brings difficulties in communication and social interaction, as well as abnormal behaviour patterns, all of which have an impact upon parents. Method. As part of a larger study, one hundred mothers of children with ASC were asked to complete several scales including the Family Adaptation and Cohesion Evaluation Scale (FACES IV), and The Parenting Stress Index-Short form (PSI-SF). Results. The Parenting Stress Index scores showed that the mothers of the primary aged children felt very high levels of parental stress, and distress, while the mothers of secondary age children reported lesser levels. The FACES IV scores indicated that the sense of flexibility was higher in the mothers of adolescents, and that the families of girls were less cohesive than that of boys. Discussion. The highest level of parental stress was reported by the mothers of younger children, with the parenting of teenage girls being the most stressful. Conclusion. A family pattern which tends to seek smaller changes could reduce the sense of family distress that parents of children with ASC experience. As the children move into adolescence the mothers tend to feel less stressed, but less so for the mothers of teenage girls.

Mother's postnatal stress: an investigation of links to various factors during pregnancy and post-partum.

Higher levels of parental stress have long-term effects on children's health and could lead to dysfunction in the parent-child interaction. Different background factors can be predictors of high parental stress. The aim of this study was to examine parental stress among Swedish women and identify different factors linked to women's parental stress. About 702 women were recruited to a clinical study and followed up six months after birth. Data were collected by two questionnaires, and 279 women completed the Swedish Parental Stress Questionnaire (SPSQ). Less than very good mental health and depressive symptoms after birth were strongly associated with parental stress, and the strongest association was found between post-partum depressive symptoms and high levels of stress in the subscale Incompetence. Multiparity was associated with high stress in two subscales, and lower level of education was a protective factor for stress in nearly all subscales. Depressive symptoms and perceived poor mental health post-partum are the most important factors related to high parental stress. The results point to the importance of identifying and supporting mothers with depressive symptoms, since these women have both mental illness and increased stress.

Behavioural Problems in Children with Headache and Maternal Stress: Is Children's Attachment Security a Protective Factor?

Headache is a potentially disabling condition involving enduring pain that negatively influences the quality of family life. Behavioural problems are more common in children with headache and are potentially associated with higher levels of parental stress. The aim of this study was to evaluate the extent to which children's behavioural problems were associated with maternal stress and how the child's perception of security in the maternal attachment relationship moderates this association. Seventy‐one school‐aged children with headache (headache group (HG), age M = 9.8 years old, SD = 1.3) and 71 children from a low‐risk normative population (control group (CG), age M = 9.2 years old, SD = 1) and their mothers were involved in the study. Mothers' reports of children's behavioural problems were associated with higher maternal stress in the caring task both in the HG and in the CG. Results also showed that the HG was more at risk for behavioural problems, whereas no difference between groups was detected for parenting stress and for attachment insecurity. In children with headache, perception of attachment security decreased the strength of the association between maternal stress and externalizing behavioural problems. Secure attachment may provide children with headache and their parents with support in managing the negative emotions that arise in the context of significant health issues. Implications for practice are discussed. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Social participation of children age 8–12 with SLI

Purpose: Two objectives are being pursued: (1) to describe the level of social participation of children aged 8–12 presenting a specific language impairment (SLI) and (2) to identify personal and family factors associated with their level of social participation. Method: This cross-sectional study was conducted among 29 children with SLI and one of their parents. Parental stress and family adversity were measured as risk factors. The measure of life habits (LIFE-H) adapted to children aged 5-3 was used to measure social participation. Results: The assumption that social participation of these children is impaired in relation to the communication dimension was generally confirmed. The statements referring to the “communication in the community” and “written communication” are those for which the results are weaker. “Communication at home” is made easier albeit with some difficulties, while “telecommunication” is totally preserved. A high level of parental stress is also confirmed, affecting the willingness of parents to support their child’s autonomy. Conclusions: The achievement of a normal lifestyle of children with SLI is upset in many spheres of life. Methods of intervention must better reflect the needs and realities experienced by these children in their various living environments, in order to optimize social participation, and consequently, to improve their well-being and that of their families. The need to develop strategies to develop children's independence and to reduce parental stress must be recognized and all stakeholders need to be engaged in the resolution of this challenge.Implications for RehabilitationThe realization of life habits of SLI children is compromised at various levels, especially in the domain related to “communication in the community” and “written communication”.Speech-language pathologists must consider providing ongoing support throughout the primary years of these children and during adolescence, to promote and facilitate the continued realization of life habits of SLI persons.Providing ongoing support throughout the primary years and thereafter is needed to facilitate the continuing realization of life habits of SLI persons.Parents of children with SLI experience considerable stress in relation to the exercise of their parental roles.It is important to intervene and to support parents to promote autonomy for their SLI children.

Long-term health-related quality of life of patients with pediatric onset intestinal failure

BackgroundDespite improved survival rates of patients with pediatric intestinal failure (IF), data on health-related quality of life (HRQoL) of IF patients are still scarce. We hypothesized that I) continued parenteral nutrition, underlying intestinal motility disorder, abdominal pain and problematic bowel function would be associated with poorer HRQoL and higher parental stress levels, and II) the time intervals since the latest bowel operation, the latest episode of sepsis, and the latest inpatient care episode would be associated with better HRQoL and lower parental stress. MethodsPatients with pediatric onset IF and their parents answered questionnaires on HRQoL, parental stress, and bowel-related symptoms. Clinical data were gathered by chart review. Controls matched for age and sex were randomly chosen by the Population Register Centre of Finland. ResultsThirty-six (73%) IF patients participated at a median age of 9years. Overall HRQoL was similar to healthy peers, and frequent abdominal pain was the only factor associated with poorer HRQoL. Abdominal pain and stool frequency >3 times per day were associated with higher levels of parental stress, whereas longer time intervals since the latest bowel operation or hospitalization were associated with lower parental stress levels. ConclusionLong-term HRQoL of pediatric IF patients is comparable to that of healthy peers. Time often eases parental stress, but frequent abdominal pain presents a challenge to the well-being of some patients and requires medical attention.

Clinical differences in children with autism spectrum disorder with and without food selectivity

Several studies have described the atypical eating behaviors frequently occurring in children with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD), and food selectivity is the most frequent of these problems. The everyday management of mealtime behaviors among children with ASD can have a negative impact on family routines and become a significant stressor for families. However, much remains unknown about why food selectivity is so prevalent among individuals with ASD. The objective of this study was to investigate clinical and behavioral features in individuals with ASD with the aim of identifying distinctive clinical profiles in children with and without food selectivity. A total of 158 children with ASD were enrolled in this study: 79 participants with food selectivity (FS) were age and sex matched with 79 participants without food selectivity (No FS). All participants and their parents completed a battery of psychological tests for a comprehensive evaluation of ASD symptoms, cognitive abilities, adaptive skills, behavioral problems and parental stress level. No statistically significant difference on gastrointestinal symptoms and growth adequacy was found between the FS group and the No FS group. Overall, the FS group showed significantly higher rates of ASD symptoms as compared to the No FS group in the questionnaires completed by parents. Furthermore, parents of the FS group reported significantly higher levels of parental stress and a larger degree of their children's behavioral problems as compared to the No FS group. Finally, there were no differences between the FS and the No FS group on any adaptive skill domain. Our findings suggest that the identification of distinctive clinical and behavioral patterns in children with ASD and food selectivity is a crucial issue for parents and therapists in the daily management.

Why is young maternal age at first childbirth a risk factor for persistent delinquency in their male offspring? Examining the role of family and parenting factors.

Children born to mothers who were younger than average at their first childbirth are at increased risk for future persistent delinquent behaviour, but explanations for this remain unclear. Our aim was to identify possible family and parenting variables that may help explain this relationship. We hypothesised that parental stress, large number of children in the home, low socioeconomic status (including neighbourhood problems) and poor parenting would account for the link between early first motherhood and their offspring's delinquency. Four hundred and sixty-two boys were selected from the Pittsburgh Youth Study, a longitudinal study of a random sample of school boys in Pittsburgh, initially assessed half-yearly and then annually from 7 to 19 years of age, using self-reporting and other reporting methods. Indirect effect models were used to test relationships between variables. Higher levels of parental stress, poorer parent-child communication and caring for a larger number of children all mediated the relationship between maternal youth and persistent delinquency by their boys, but only explained about 20% of it. At least partial explanations of the relationship between a mother's age at first childbirth and persistent delinquency in her male offspring suggest that future research should test whether early interventions with younger mothers to decrease their sense of stress in parenting and improve their capacity for communication with their child(ren) may help to prevent persistent delinquency in their boys. Programmes designed to help young women make more informed and planned decisions about their pregnancies should also be evaluated. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Multiple births and maternal mental health from pregnancy to 5 years after birth: A longitudinal population-based cohort study

Background: There is a lack of population-based studies on multiple births and maternal mental health. Having a high-risk pregnancy by bearing two or more children is a stressful life event, and the challenges of parenting two or more children probably also lead to a high level of parental stress. There are a few results on multiple births and maternal mental health from studies on in vitro fertilization samples. The only previous cohort study on multiple birth and maternal mental health included a single measure of depressive symptoms at 9 months postpartum. We aim to estimate the relative risk for depression and anxiety after multiple birth in a population-based prospective cohort study while adjusting for factors prior and subsequent to fertilization.Methods: We used data from 87,807 pregnancies included in the Norwegian Mother and Child Cohort study. Information on multiple birth was retrieved from the Norwegian Medical Birth Registry, and maternal mental health was assessed at 17th and 30th week of gestation and 0.5, 1.5, 3, and 5 years postpartum. There were 1,842 plural births included in the study (i.e. 1,821 twin births and 21 higher order births). We predicted maternal mental health at each time point, subsequently adjusting for 1) factors prior to fertilization (e.g. maternal age and in vitro fertilization); 2) factors during pregnancy (e.g. hypertensive states); 3) factors at delivery (e.g. cesarean section); 4) child-related postnatal complications (e.g. intracranial hemorrhage); and 5) concurrent depression or anxiety after pregnancy.Results: Adjusted for antecedents of plural birth, mothers expecting a plural birth had a normal risk for anxiety (RR=1.05; 95% CI 0.92-1.20) and depression (RR=1.02; 95% CI 0.89-1.16) at 17th week of gestation. However, plural birth was associated with maternal depression at 1.5, 3, and 5 years postpartum and maternal anxiety at 3 years postpartum. The trend was for the association to increase across time, and mothers of multiplets had a significant higher risk for depression at 5 years (RR=1.77; 95% CI 1.33-2.35). Fully adjusted the RR for depression was 1.51 (95% CI 1.10-2.08). By adjusting depression for concurrent anxiety, and vice versa we found the effect of multiple pregnancy to be specific to depression and not anxiety.Conclusions: Mothers expecting multiplets have normal mental health during pregnancy. After birth there is an increasing risk for depression up to 5 years of age. Our findings indicate that more is simply more, and mothers of multiplets have need for additional support several years postpartum

Parenting teens with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder: challenges and opportunities.

Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) presents in childhood with inattention, hyperactivity, and impulsivity and is associated with functional impairments. These children tend to display a variety of disruptive behaviors, which may worsen in adolescence. Teens with ADHD may show high levels of defiance, posing significant challenges for parents. Early efforts to understand parenting in the context of teen ADHD reveal high levels of parental stress and reactivity in response to the teen's ADHD symptoms. Subsequent research recognized that some of these parents have ADHD or other psychopathology that may contribute to maladaptive parenting. However, some parents adjust and demonstrate optimism and resilience in the face of their teens' ADHD. Recent research has identified parental factors (eg, emotional intelligence) and interventions (eg, mindfulness training) that may improve parenting/teen relationships and the developmental outcomes of teens. This article explores parenting teens with ADHD with a focus on these novel interventions.

Parents’ Perceptions of the Severity of Their Child’s Autistic Behaviors and Differences in Parental Stress, Family Functioning, and Social Support

The current study was designed to examine differences in parental stress, family functioning, and social supports among parents’ perceptions of the severity of their child’s autistic behaviors and a control group. To evaluate such differences, parental perceptions of children with autism and with typically developing children were compared. Parents of children with more severe autistic behaviors reported higher levels of parental stress and poorer ratings of their personal functioning in the family than parents of children with less severe autistic behaviors and typically developing children. The groups did not differ on the parents’ report of the functioning of the family unit or on perceived helpfulness of family social support. More research is needed on this topic.

The International Parenting Survey–Canada: Exploring access to parenting services.

This article presents results of a survey investigating parents' needs for parenting services, their access to and preferences for parenting programs. Canadian parents (N = 2,340) completed the International Parenting Survey (Morawska, Heinrichs, & Sanders, 2011) with respect to the youngest of their children who was in the 2-12 year age range. In this community sample, over a quarter of parents reported that they had consulted a professional about their child's behavior in the last year. Fifteen percent of parents had participated in some form of parenting program, although only a quarter of these programs were evidence-based. Parents' top-reported barriers to participating in a parenting program were lack of awareness and felt need, followed by practical barriers such as lack of time and access to child care. Parents expressed interest in a diverse array of delivery modes for parenting programs. Implications for enhancing access to parenting programs are discussed.Keywords: access to services, children, parent preferences, awareness of programs, parenting supportResumeLe present article expose les resultats d'une enquete sur les besoins des parents en matiere de services d'aide parentale ainsi que sur l'acces des parents aux differents programmes d'aide parentale et leurs preferences par rapport a ces derniers. Des parents canadiens (N ^ 2 340) ont repondu a l'Enquete internationale aupres des parents (Morawska, Heinrichs, & Sanders, 2011) au sujet de leur enfant le plus jeune se trouvant dans la plage d'âge de 2 a 12 ans. Dans cet echantillon de la collectivite, plus d'un quart des parents ont declare qu'ils avaient consulte un professionnel au sujet du comportement de leur enfant au cours de la derniere annee. Quinze pour cent des parents ont participe a une forme quelconque de programme d'aide aux parents, bien que seulement un quart de ces programmes etaient fondes sur des preuves. Les principales barri- eres citees par les parents concernant la participation a un pro- gramme d'aide parentale etaient qu'ils n'etaient pas au courant ou qu'ils n'en ressentaient pas le besoin, suivies de barrieres pratiques tels que le manque de temps et d'acces aux services de garderie. Les parents ont exprime de l'interet vis-a-vis une panoplie de modes de prestation de programmes d'aide parentale. Les impli- cations relatives a l'amelioration de l'acces aux programmes d'aide parentale sont abordees.Mots-cles : acces aux services, enfants, preferences parentales, sensibilisation aux programmes, aide parentale.One in five children experiences a mental disorder that disrupts their functioning in multiple domains; untreated, many symptoms persist into adulthood (Merikangas et al., 2010). Mirroring the situation in other countries, only 25% of Canadian children in need receive any services (Waddell, Peters, Hua, McEwan, & Garland, 2007). It is clear Canada has a substantial unmet need for services to address children's emotional and behavioral problems. A large body of psychological research has established that family envi- ronments both contribute to and are affected by children's prob- lems (Grusec, 2011). Children and youth with emotional and behavior problems are more likely to grow up in families charac- terized by parental psychopathology, child rearing practices that contribute to the child's dysfunction, aggression between parents, poor family communication, and high levels of parental stress (Kazdin & De Los Reyes, 2008; Piche, Bergeron & Cyr, 2008). To address these issues, a variety of programs have been designed to support parents in providing a positive environment for their children (Sanders, 2012). In this article we describe results from a survey of Canadian parents about whether they have consulted a professional about their child's behavior, whether they have at- tended a parenting program, the perceived barriers to accessing parenting programs, as well as the perceived usefulness of differ- ent modes of delivery of parenting programs. …

Quality of Life and Parental Adjustment in Pediatric Pulmonary Hypertension

This study examines the impact of pulmonary hypertension (PH) on the quality of life (QoL) of affected youth, as well as the relationships among PH disease severity, parental adjustment variables, and family relational functioning. Subjects were 47 eligible parents of children with PH aged 2 to 18 years who were evaluated at Boston Children's Hospital. Measures of patient QoL and of parental stress, coping, and adjustment were administered to the caregivers. Clinicians rated illness severity and family relational functioning. Youth with PH scored significantly lower than healthy norms on a measure of parent-reported QoL (total, psychosocial, and physical QoL, each P < .0001). The parents reported encountering stressful events more frequently than published norms of parents of children with cancer (P < .0001). Thirty-four percent of parents of children with PH met criteria for presumed psychiatric diagnosis, and they reported using psychologic coping strategies significantly more often than a normative sample. A summary parental stress measure correlated inversely with child QoL, an effect that held true even after controlling for disease severity (P = .03). PH takes a major toll on children and their families. Decreased QoL among youth with PH was significantly associated with high levels of parental stress, over and above the effect of illness severity. These findings suggest that interventions to better support the caretakers of affected children and adolescents should accompany medical treatment advances so as to improve QoL for patients facing pediatric PH.

The relationship between parental stress and postpartum depression among adolescent mothers enrolled in a randomized controlled prevention trial.

Given the high co-occurrence of depression and parental stress among adolescent mothers, we evaluated the relationship between parental stress and postpartum depression among primiparous adolescent mothers. We conducted an observational analysis among a cohort of 106 adolescent mothers at 289 postpartum visits who were enrolled in a randomized controlled trial to prevent postpartum depression. Parental stress was measured using the Parenting Stress Index, short form. The Structured Clinical Interview for DSM-IV Childhood Diagnoses was administered to assess for postpartum depression; subthreshold depression was assessed using the Children's Depression Rating Scale, revised version. Generalized estimating equations were utilized to assess the relationship of parental stress on postpartum depression during the first 6 months postpartum. We present adjusted odds ratios (AOR) controlling for study arm, age, born in the United States, prior history of depression, and number of study visits. The median age was 16 years, 53% were Latina, and 16% reported a past history of depression. Nineteen adolescents (19%) were diagnosed with postpartum depression and 25% experienced high levels of parental stress through 6 months postpartum. Adolescent mothers who reported higher levels of parental stress were at significantly increased risk for postpartum depression [AOR 1.06 (95% CI 1.04-1.09); p < 0.0001]. High levels of parental stress predicted subsequent postpartum depression when assessing parental stress at visits prior to a depression diagnosis to determine whether we could establish a temporal association [AOR 1.06 (95% CI 1.02-1.09); p < 0.01]. Parental stress was also a risk factor for subthreshold depression [AOR 1.04 (95% CI 1.01-1.07); p < 0.01]. Parental stress was a significant risk factor for developing both postpartum depression as well as subthreshold depression among adolescent mothers. Interventions that target a reduction in parental stress may lead to less depression severity among primiparous adolescent mothers.

Parental stress in mothers and fathers one year after birth

Objective: The aim was to compare prenatal feelings and parental stress in parents one year after birth. An additional aim was to study associations between parental stress and several explanatory factors in mothers and fathers. Background: The birth of a baby brings many changes to the lives of parents and families. Existing research on gender differences in parental stress levels is somewhat inconclusive. Method: A longitudinal Swedish survey of a one-year cohort of 783 women and 671 male partners recruited in mid pregnancy and followed up one year after birth. Data were collected using three questionnaires where different aspects of stress arising from the parenting role measured by the Swedish Parental Stress Questionnaire (SPSQ) were investigated. Results: Women and men differed in age and level of education. Women had more negative feelings towards pregnancy, birth and the early parenthood compared to men. Women reported higher levels of parental stress than men in three out of five subscales in the SPSQ (Role Restriction, Social Isolation and Spouse Relationship). The subscales were moderately correlated with background variables but strongly correlated with prenatal feelings. Prenatal negative feelings about the pregnancy, the upcoming birth and the first weeks with a newborn baby were strongly correlated with parental stress for both mothers and fathers. Conclusion: Assessing parents’ feelings and prenatal attitudes is important for understanding parental stress one year after birth. Health care providers should discuss these issues with both parents during pregnancy in order to help them cope with the normal stresses of parenting.

Exploring risk for abuse of children with chronic conditions or disabilities – parent's perceptions of stressors and the role of professionals

Children with chronic conditions or disabilities are at an increased risk for abuse. High level of parental stress has been identified as possible trigger for abuse, were a combination of several factors are of importance, as lack of social support and limited resources in the neighbourhood. Suggestions for preventive measures have merely focused on parenting strategies and targeted intervention programmes. So far, little attention has been paid on how the risk for abuse might relate to parent's perceptions of stressors and the role of professionals. The purpose of the current study was therefore to explore risk factors for abuse with focus on both parent-child and parent-professional relationships. Semi-structured in-depth interviews with 15 parents of children with chronic conditions or disability were collected and analysed according to qualitative content analysis. Three major themes were found that could be seen as risk factors for child abuse: (1) Emotional demands in precarious situations between parent and child. (2) Gradual shift in responsibility from professionals to parents concerning access to and co-ordination of service and support. (3) Emotionally closed environment between professionals and parents and taboo on talking about abuse. The gradual shift in responsibility had emotional implications, which could reinforce parental stress and thereby also indirect increase the risk of child abuse. The gradual shift in responsibility also seemed to generate an emotionally closed environment and reinforce the taboo on talking about abuse, which in turn hindered preventive measures. In the light of parent's perceptions of stressors and the role of professionals the findings indicate that abuse against children with chronic conditions or disability is not only a family matter, but also depending on qualities in service, professional support and social norms. The result pinpoints three challenges for preventive measures, all with emotional implications, parental strategies, organizational efforts and cultural awareness.

Management of infantile colic

Although infantile colic is considered to be a self-limiting and benign condition, it is often a frustrating problem for parents and caregivers. It is a frequent source of consultation with...

Sensory Processing Difficulties, Behavioral Problems, and Parental Stress in a Clinical Population of Young Children.

This study examined the relationship between sensory processing difficulties, parental stress, and behavioral problems in a clinical sample of young children with developmental and behavioral difficulties. We hypothesized that a high rate of sensory processing difficulties would be found, that there would be a high rate of comorbidity between sensory processing difficulties and behavioral problems, and that children's sensory processing difficulties and parental stress would be highly correlated. Parents of 59 children ages two to five who attended an out-patient clinic in a low income, urban community completed the Child Behavior Checklist, Parental Stress Inventory-Short Form and the Short Sensory Profile. Children in this clinical population showed a high prevalence (55.9%) of sensory processing difficulties, a significantly higher rate than previously reported. Sensory processing deficits were correlated with behavioral difficulties and parental stress levels-suggesting that as sensory processing difficulties increase, so do behavioral difficulties and parental stress. Parents of children with sensory processing deficits had significantly higher levels of parental stress than parents of children without sensory deficits. Parenting stress levels were also clinically elevated for the cohort of children in which sensory processing difficulties and behavioral concerns co-existed. These findings suggest that treatment outcomes might improve and parental stress could be reduced if mental health clinicians were trained to identify and address sensory problems. This could result in more children being screened and treated for sensory processing difficulties and an eventual reduction in the rates of parental stress.

Correlates of parental stress and psychopathology in pediatric epilepsy

Background:Chronic conditions like epilepsy in a child can affect his/her entire family. The failure of the family members to adapt adequately to the unique demands of this childhood chronic illness can be considered as an important risk factor for development of psychopathology.Objectives:The objectives of this study were to study the profile of parenting stress in parents of children with epilepsy and its correlates; and, to examine the correlates of psychopathology in these children.Material and Methods:Twenty three epileptic children and their families were subjected to Parenting Stress Index (PSI), Scores for indices such as The Children's Depression Inventory (CDI), Benton Visual Retention test, Spence anxiety scale for children, The Child Behavior Checklist (CBCL) and Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children were calculated.Results:Mean verbal and performance IQ score was 94, while the mean total IQ score was 95. Mean scores for all Wechsler IQ Scores as well as Benton Visual retention test were within the average range. Means for total internalizing CBCL t scores (M, Mean=70; Standard Deviation, SD=4.4), total externalizing CBCL t scores (M=60, SD=9.6), and total behavior problems CBCL t scores (M=67, SD=5.2) were above the standard cut off levels of 65 for clinical behavioral problems. Mean score on CDI was 42 ± 2. Scores of the PSI equal to or higher than 85th percentile were considered pathologically high.Conclusion:The results of our study indicated that pediatric patients with epilepsy, specifically with intractable cases, are correlated with high levels of parental stress.