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Mother-child interaction and child developmental capacities in toddlers with major birth defects requiring newborn

Sharon Laing1, Catherine McMahon, Judy Ungerer

  • 1Grace Centre for Newborn Care, The Children's Hospital at Westmead, Australia. sharonl@chw.edu.au

Early Human Development
|October 5, 2010
PubMed

Insights

The mother-child relationship quality is often suboptimal in toddlers undergoing newborn surgery for major birth defects. Developmental delays in these children are linked to less positive maternal interaction and increased maternal intrusiveness.

Area of Science:

  • Developmental Psychology
  • Pediatric Surgery
  • Maternal-Child Health

Background:

  • The mother-child relationship is crucial for child development.
  • Limited understanding exists regarding biologic risks, beyond prematurity, impacting this relationship.
  • Biologic risks, such as major birth defects requiring surgery, may affect maternal-child interactions.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate the quality of mother-child interaction in toddlers who underwent newborn surgery for major birth defects.
  • To examine the association between interaction quality and early child development in this cohort.

Main Methods:

  • Ninety-three toddlers (mean age 24.7 months) with major birth defects requiring newborn surgery were studied.
  • Developmental testing and videotaped free play interactions with mothers were conducted.
  • Interactions were rated using the NICHD (National Institute of Child Health and Human Development) schema and compared to normative data.

Main Results:

  • Overall mother-child interaction ratings were suboptimal compared to normative data.
  • Forty-four percent of children exhibited developmental delay.
  • Children with developmental delay showed less positive interactivity and had mothers who were less responsive and more intrusive.

Conclusions:

  • The quality of mother-child interaction is frequently nonoptimal in toddlers with major birth defects requiring newborn surgery.
  • Mothers of infants with developmental delay are at higher risk for interaction difficulties.
  • Early identification and intervention for these at-risk dyads are recommended.
Abstract

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