WIP 47 - Understanding the Psychosocial Needs of Parents of Children with Congenital Heart Disease: From the Prenatal to Postnatal Period

Publication Number: WIP 47.7419

Nupur N. Makkar, Children's Hospital Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, United States; Rosas Valeria, Children's Hospital Los Angeles, Wilmington, CA, United States; Eliza Harley, Stanford University School of Medicine, Palo Alto, CA, United States; Nhu Tran, Children's Hospital Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, United States; Jodie K.. Votava-Smith, Children's Hopsital Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, United States; Vidya Rajagopalan, Children's Hospital Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, United States

Background: Increasing rates of prenatal diagnosis for congenital heart disease (CHD), the most common birth anomaly, allows for a smoother delivery and appropriate postnatal care planning. However, it increases psychological distress for parents during the prenatal period. Parental anxiety and depression are modifiable risk factors that impact CHD outcomes. There is a substantial body of evidence on maternal stress and its relationship to child outcomes in CHD, little is known about the experience of the non-birthing parents (NBP). An understanding of the experiences of both parents concurrently can provide information needed to design holistic mental health support for families with CHD.

Objective: 1. To compare and contrast the psychosocial needs of birthing parents and NBP of children with CHD in the prenatal period and if/how they change in postnatal period.
2. Assess how parental resilience factors (coping strategies, social support, and socioeconomic factors) influence anxiety and depression in parents of children with CHD.

Design/Methods: This is a single-center, prospective longitudinal study. Expectant parents of children with critical CHD are enrolled in the study with informed consent. Both parents are asked to complete a survey in the prenatal and post-surgical, postnatal period. The survey consists of the following questionnaires: basic demographics, Edinburgh postnatal depression scale (EPDS), generalized anxiety disorder-7 (GAD-7), social support questionnaire-6 (SSQ-6), brief-cope. The results of the individual questionnaires from the survey will be converted to a numerical value and reported as a continuous variable. T-test will be used to compare scores between the birthing and non-birthing parents. Pearson correlation coefficient will be used to assess correlations between parental resilience factors with depression and anxiety scores. The study has received IRB approval. Participant enrollment and data collection is in process and will continue until March 2025. Data will be analyzed during March.