Abstract
Early prenatal identification of the mother who is likely to produce a low birth weight (LBW) infant is difficult, but would be helpful in management.
Thirty very low birth weight (VLBW, < 1500 grams) infant-mother pairs and 30 full-term controls (C) were selected sequentially over an 18-month period. They were matched by maternal age, parity and sex of infant. The Michigan Screening Profile for Parenting (MSPP, Helfer et al), which identified potential for problems in parent-child interaction, was administered to each mother at the time of the infant's discharge and again one month later.
Preliminary analysis shows significant differences between VLBW's and C's: 1) 42% of VLBW mothers responded negatively or inconsistently to “Emotional needs met” (reflecting a non-nurturing upbringing) versus 19% of C's; 2) 21% of VLBW mothers reported poor relationships with their parents versus 6% of C's; 3) 17% of VLBW mothers had realistic expectations for their children, versus 44% of C's; 4) 29% of VLBW mothers reported a pregnancy interval of less than 1 year versus 7% of C's. 67 LBW's (1500-2500 grams) showed 38% with pregnancy interval less than 1 year, and 45% with psychosocial problems.
These results suggest that knowledge of emotional deprivation might lead to earlier identification of women at risk for LBW infants, and to more effective prevention of LBW.
Article PDF
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Brush, V., Clapp, J., Philip, A. et al. 29 MATERNAL EMOTIONAL DEPRIVATION ASSOCIATED WITH LOW BIRTH WEIGHT. Pediatr Res 12 (Suppl 4), 368 (1978). https://doi.org/10.1203/00006450-197804001-00034
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1203/00006450-197804001-00034