Prenatally-counseled congenital diaphragmatic hernia parents exhibit positive well-being before and after surgical repair

Background/Purpose

The purpose of this paper was to examine the effect of prenatal counseling in the Advanced Fetal Care Center (AFCC) on the well-being of parents of infants with congenital diaphragmatic hernia (CDH).

Methods

From 2008 through 2012, 26 mothers and fathers of surgically repaired CDH patients who received prenatal counseling at our institution, and 15 who received no prenatal counseling, each completed the Short-Form 36 version 1 (SF-36v1) at the appropriate time points: prenatal, two weeks, and six months post-surgery.

Results

Parents in both groups did not differ by demographic characteristics. Patients who received prenatal counseling had significantly longer ventilatory time and length of stay (LOS) in the ICU and in the hospital compared to those who did not receive prenatal counseling (all P < .01). Mothers and fathers had similar SF-36v1 mental and physical component summary (MCS, PCS) post-surgery scores when compared by counseling status. Prenatal MCS scores for mothers and fathers (47 vs. 41; P = .24) were similar to those at six months post-surgery (47 vs. 47; P = .90).

Conclusions

When hospital LOS was controlled between groups stratified by AFCC counseling status, MCS scores were comparable prenatally and were sustained at six months post-surgery for both parents. These findings may reflect the support services parents received beginning in the prenatal period.