Feasibility of a Child-Friendly 2-Minute Walk Test: A Crossover Randomized Controlled Trial.

AIMS: Most studies that use the NIH Toolbox 2-Minute Walk Test with young children, modify the protocol, compromising the generalizability of outcomes. A standardizable protocol is needed. The purpose of this study was to compare the 2MWT performance of children ages 3-6 years on the standard NIH Toolbox protocol and on a modified protocol designed to support young children. METHODS: Cross-over randomized controlled trial. Fifteen typically developing children ages 3-6 years were randomly assigned to the performance order of the NIH toolbox 2MWT protocol and the Modified Accessibility Path (MAP) 2MWT protocol. Outcome variables and statistical analyses included test completion (McNemar test), distance walked (Wilcoxon signed-rank test), and accuracy (general estimating equation model with Poisson distribution). RESULTS: All children completed 2 min of walking with the MAP protocol. Only 40% of children completed the NIH Toolbox protocol, with 83% of these NIH completers bolstered by previous exposure to the MAP protocol. Collapsed across the order, children also had significantly fewer errors per lap with the MAP protocol (p < 0.0001), despite walking a significantly greater distance (p = 0.006). CONCLUSIONS: These findings lend preliminary support for standardized application of a 2MWT with young children when the protocol is designed to be child-friendly.

Infant illness severity and perinatal post-traumatic stress disorder after discharge from the neonatal intensive care unit.

BACKGROUND: Risk factors for perinatal posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) among parents of an infant in the NICU have varied in previous literature. The relationships between perception of illness severity and objective measures of illness severity with PTSD are not well understood. AIMS: To determine if PTSD among parents after an infant NICU discharge can be predicted by 1) objective measures of infant illness severity or 2) perceptions of infant illness severity. STUDY DESIGN: A prospective, observational study. SUBJECTS: Parent/infant dyads who were in the NICU for ≥14 days. OUTCOME MEASURES: Objective measures of illness severity were obtained from the electronic health record. Perceptions of illness were measured by the response to the question, "How sick is your child/patient?" on a 5-point Likert scale. The Perinatal Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder Questionnaire (PPQ) was completed by parents three months after discharge. RESULTS: One hundred ninety-four dyads participated in the study, 86% of parents completed follow up screening. 25% of parents screened positive for PTSD. Parents perceived infants to be sick more often than hospital caregivers. In bivariate analysis many objective measures of illness severity were associated with PTSD. Parent perceptions of illness were also associated with PTSD after adjusting for objective measures of illness (OR 3.2, 95% CI 1.1-6.1, p = 0.008). CONCLUSIONS: PTSD in parents after NICU discharge is multifactorial. Objective illness risk factors can be used to screen parents at risk. Hospital caregivers should strive to understand parents' perception of illness and improve communication to potentially decrease PTSD after discharge.

A Prospective Study of Parent Health-Related Quality of Life before and after Discharge from the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit.

OBJECTIVE: To determine how infant illness and parent demographics are associated with parent health-related quality of life (HRQL) during and 3 months after hospitalization in the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU). We hypothesized that parents of extremely preterm infants would report lower NICU HRQL than other parents, and that all parents would report improved HRQL after discharge. STUDY DESIGN: This prospective study of parent-infant dyads admitted to a level IV NICU for ≥14 days from 2016 to 2017 measured parent HRQL before and 3 months after discharge using the Pediatric Quality of Life Inventory Family Impact Module. Multivariable regression was used to identify risk factors associated with HRQL differences during hospitalization and after discharge. RESULTS: Of the 194 dyads, 167 (86%) completed the study (24% extremely preterm; 53% moderate to late preterm; 22% term). During the NICU hospitalization, parents of extremely preterm infants reported lower adjusted HRQL (-7 points; P = .013) than other parents. After discharge, parents of extremely preterm infants reported higher HRQL compared with their NICU score (+10 points; P = .001). Tracheostomy (-13; P = .006), home oxygen (-6; P = .022), and readmission (-5; P = .037) were associated with lower parent HRQL 3 months after discharge, adjusted for NICU HRQL score. CONCLUSIONS: Parents of extremely preterm infants experienced a greater negative impact on HRQL during the NICU hospitalization and more improvement after discharge than parents of other infants hospitalized in the NICU. Complex home care was associated with lower parent HRQL after discharge. The potential benefit of home discharge should be balanced against the potential negative impact of complex home care.