[Stress in parents of hospitalized newborns in a neonatal intensive care unit]. / Estrés en padres de recién nacidos hospitalizados en una unidad de paciente crítico neonatal.

The birth of a child that requires hospitalization in a Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) can be very stressful for parents. OBJECTIVE: To determine the stress level of parents of newborns (NB) hospitalized in a level III NICU in Santiago, and its association with clinical and sociodemographic variables. PATIENTS AND METHOD: Descriptive cross-sectional study. 373 admissions were evaluated. The sampling was non-probabilistic and included parents of RN admitted to the UPCN between 7 and 21 days of hospitalization. Only parents which have visited the RN at least three times were included. INSTRUMENTS: i) Questionnaire to obtain data which could not be obtained from the medical record; ii) Parental Stress Scale: Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (PSS:NICU) which measures the perception of parents about stressors from the physical and psychological environment of the UPCN. RESULTS: 100 parents of 59 hospitalized NB participated in the study. The average parental stress was 2.87±0.69. The subscale scores got higher was “Relationship with the baby and parental role”. Complications in pregnancy, prenatal diagnosis or prenatal hospitalization, did not affect the stress level or the presence of prematurity, respiratory diseases, congenital malformations, genopathies or requirement of mechanical ventilation. CONCLUSIONS: Stress levels presented in parents are unrelated to gender and to the studied clinical variables.

Estrés en padres de recién nacidos hospitalizados en una unidad de paciente crítico neonatal / Stress in parents of hospitalized newborns in a neonatal intensive care unit

El nacimiento de un hijo que requiere de hospitalización en una Unidad de Paciente Crítico Neonatal (UPCN) puede ser una situación muy estresante para sus padres. Objetivo: Conocer el nivel de estrés de padres de recién nacidos (RN) hospitalizados en una UPCN nivel III y su asociación con variables clínicas y sociodemográficas. Pacientes y Método: Estudio descriptivo y transversal, se recibieron 373 ingresos en la UPCN. El muestreo fue no probabilístico y se incluyó a padres y madres de RN ingresados a la UPCN que tuvieran al momento de la entrevista una hospitalización mayor a 7 días y menor a 21 días y que al menos hayan visitado al RN en tres oportunidades. Las mediciones se realizaron entre los 7 y 21 días de hospitalización. Instrumentos: i) Cuestionario para datos que no pudieron obtenerse de la ficha clínica; ii) Escala de Estrés Parental: Unidad de Cuidados Intensivos Neonatales (PSS:NICU) que mide la percepción de los padres acerca de los estresores provenientes del ambiente físico y psicológico de las UPCN. Resultados: Participaron 100 padres y madres de 59 RN hospitalizados. El estrés parental promedio fue de 2,87 ± 0,69. La subescala que obtuvo puntajes más altos fue “Relación con el bebé y rol parental”. La presencia de complicaciones del embarazo, diagnóstico prenatal u hospitalización prenatal, no afectó el nivel de estrés, como tampoco la prematurez, patología respiratoria, malformaciones congénitas, genopatías o requerimiento de ventilación mecánica. Conclusiones: Los niveles de estrés no presentan diferencias de género y no guardan relación con las variables clínicas estudiadas.

The birth of a child that requires hospitalization in a Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) can be very stressful for parents. Objective: To determine the stress level of parents of newborns (NB) hospitalized in a level III NICU in Santiago, and its association with clinical and sociodemographic variables. Patients and Method: Descriptive cross-sectional study. 373 admissions were evaluated. The sampling was non-probabilistic and included parents of RN admitted to the UPCN between 7 and 21 days of hospitalization. Only parents which have visited the RN at least three times were included. Instruments: i) Questionnaire to obtain data which could not be obtained from the medical record; ii) Parental Stress Scale: Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (PSS:NICU) which measures the perception of parents about stressors from the physical and psychological environment of the UPCN. Results: 100 parents of 59 hospitalized NB participated in the study. The average parental stress was 2.87±0.69. The subscale scores got higher was “Relationship with the baby and parental role”. Complications in pregnancy, prenatal diagnosis or prenatal hospitalization, did not affect the stress level or the presence of prematurity, respiratory diseases, congenital malformations, genopathies or requirement of mechanical ventilation. Conclusions: Stress levels presented in parents are unrelated to gender and to the studied clinical variables.