Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2015 Jan;36(1):24-34.
doi: 10.1097/DBP.0000000000000112.

Factors affecting parent-child relationships one year after positive newborn screening for cystic fibrosis or congenital hypothyroidism

Audrey Tluczek  1 , Roseanne Clark, Anne Chevalier McKechnie, Roger L Brown
Affiliations

Factors affecting parent-child relationships one year after positive newborn screening for cystic fibrosis or congenital hypothyroidism

Audrey Tluczek et al. J Dev Behav Pediatr. 2015 Jan.

Abstract

Objective: Examine factors that mediate parent-infant relationships 12 months after positive newborn screening (NBS).

Methods: We examined effects of infant diagnosis, parents' perceptions of child vulnerability and child attachment, parental depression and anxiety on parent-infant feeding interactions for 131 mothers and 118 fathers of 131 infants whose NBS and diagnostics confirmed cystic fibrosis (CF, n = 23), congenital hypothyroidism (CH, n = 35), CF carrier status (CF-C, n = 38), or healthy normal NBS (H, n = 35).

Results: Separate composite indicator structural equation models for mothers and fathers showed that neonatal diagnosis was not associated with increased anxiety or depression. In comparison with the healthy group, CF group parents reported higher perceptions of child vulnerability (p < .001, p = .002), and CF-C group fathers viewed their children as more attached (p = .021). High maternal perception of child vulnerability was associated with low perceptions of child attachment (p = .001), which was associated with task-oriented feeding behavior (p = .016, p = .029). Parental task-oriented feeding behavior was associated with less positive (p < .001, p < .001) and more negative interactions (p < .001, p = .001) with their infants. High paternal perception of child vulnerability was associated with negative parent interactions (p < .001). High parental affective involvement and verbalization was associated with high infant affective expressiveness, communicative skills, and social responsiveness (mothers' p < .001, fathers' p < .001). High parental negative effect and/or inconsistent and intrusive behavior were associated with infant dysregulation and irritability (mothers, p < .001, fathers, p < .001).

Conclusion: The severity of conditions identified through NBS can affect parents' perceptions of their child's vulnerability and attachment. Infant feeding problems in the context of chronic health conditions, like CF, could represent signs of more deeply rooted concerns regarding the parent-child relationship that merit additional clinical evaluation.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

Conflict of Interest

None of the authors have any conflicts of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Heuristic Model for Mothers and Fathers CF, Cystic Fibrosis; CH, Congenital Hypothyroidism; CF-C, Cystic Fibrosis Carrier; H, Healthy
Figure 2
Figure 2
Significant Paths in (Mothers’) and [Fathers’] Model CF, Cystic Fibrosis; CH, Congenital Hypothyroidism; CF-C, Cystic Fibrosis Carrier; H, Healthy
See this image and copyright information in PMC

Comment in

Similar articles

See all similar articles

Cited by

See all "Cited by" articles

References

    1. American Academy of Pediatrics Newborn Screening Task Force. Serving the family from birth to the medical home: Newborn screening: A blueprint for the future - a call for a national agenda on state newborn screening programs. Pediatrics. 2000;106:389–422. - PubMed
    1. Wilson JM, Junger G. Public Health Papers. Geneva: World Health Organization; 1968. Principles and practice of screening for disease; p. 34. Retrieved from http://whqlibdoc.who.int/php/WHO_PHP_34.pdf.
    1. Andermann A, Blancquaert I, Beauchamp S, Déry V. Revisiting Wilson and Jungner in the genomic age: a review of screening criteria over the past 40 years. Bulletin of the World Health Organization. 2008;84:241–320. http://www.who.int/bulletin/volumes/86/4/07-050112/en/index.html. - PMC - PubMed
    1. Howenstine M, Montegomery GS. Cystic fibrosis. Pediatrics in Review. 2009;30:302–310. - PubMed
    1. Rastogi MV, LaFranchi SH. Congenital hypothyroidism. Orphanet J Rare Dis. 2010;5:1–22. - PMC - PubMed

Publication types