Mother-infant attachment at the age of 1 year in recipients of developmental care after preterm birth

Abstract

Objectives: Premature birth and subsequent admission to the neonatal intensive care unit impair the mother-infant attachment process. The present study aimed to determine the impact of developmental care on the mother-child attachment at the adjusted age of 1 year. Materials and Methods: In a quasi-experimental study, 105 premature infants born in Al-Zahra hospital of Tabriz at a gestational age of 26 to 32 weeks and a weight of 1500 g or less were assigned to three groups of 35. The control group, intervention group 1, and 2 received routine care, developmental care in the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) and neonatal unit, developmental care in the delivery room or operation room, respectively. The mother-child attachment at the adjusted age of 1 year was measured using Maternal Postnatal Attachment Scale. Results: The mean (standard deviation) score of the mother-child attachment at the adjusted age of 1 year in the control group, intervention group 1 and 2 was determined to be 83.8 (6.9), 81.7 (5.7), and 81.4 (6.7), respectively. The results indicated no significant difference between the three groups in terms of the score of mother-child attachment and its subscales. Conclusion: In this study, high score of the mother-child attachment was observed in all three groups. Given the importance of developmental care and support to mothers of premature infants as well as the newness of developmental care in Iran, it seems necessary for authorities to pay more attention to this type of care and conduct further research on this subject.