Parental anxiety and response to symptoms of minor illness in infants

Examined the relationship between parental anxiety and parental contact with the clinic following a child's initial DPT immunization. The subjects were 80 volunteer mothers who brought their 8-week-old infants to an outpatient clinic for a well-child visit. At the time of the visit, maternal anxiety, anxiety proneness, perception of the infant as fussy or difficult, and demographic information were assessed. Seventy-two hours after the immunization, subjects reported DPT side effects and physician contacts. Discriminant function analysis found that mothers who were anxious prior to DPT administration and who had infant girls were more likely to contact the clinic by telephone. This relationship was independent of prior maternal experience with DPT immunization, maternal perception of the infant's general fussiness, and maternal Trait anxiety.