Loss of a preterm infant: psychological aspects in parents

The unexpected death of a preterm infant is an extremely painful situation for parents. Despite a number of quantitative studies, little is known about parents' inner experience. The aim of this study was to gather more in-depth information about what preoccupies parents in this situation of suffering, thus leading to a deeper understanding of their dealing with the stressful event and enabling more adequate support to be provided by professionals. 10 mothers and 9 fathers, who had lost their extremely premature infant born between 24 and 26 weeks of gestation were invited for a semi-structured interview and retrospectively asked about their emotional, cognitive, physical and social experience at three different points in time (time of hospitalisation, 6 months and 3.5-6.5 years after the loss). The interviews were analysed by method of qualitative context analysis.

The loss of a preterm infant is an extremely intense experience for parents resulting in a rollercoaster of emotions and perceptions as well as relevant effects on the social network. The strain of this situation notwithstanding, parents also experience positive aspects, eg, feelings of closeness to their infant, comforting thoughts or help from their social network. Although still mourning the loss of their baby, most parents have overcome the tragic event.

Most parents seem to have the psychological strength to overcome the traumatic experience of losing their premature infant and are able to face life normally again. Professionals can play an important role in supporting them. Some parents require additional help to overcome the loss.