Credit: George Hodan
Although they initially show signs of psychological distress, parents of children undergoing stem cell transplant (SCT) are as resilient as the children themselves, new research suggests.
Investigators evaluated psychological adjustment in 171 children undergoing SCT and their parents.
Results in the children, which were previously reported in Pediatrics, suggested they were well-adjusted after SCT, whether or not they had received therapy to promote psychological well-being.
Results in the parents, which are now available in Biology of Blood and Marrow Transplantation, are similar.
“The aim of the study was to examine an intervention to promote positive adjustment of patients and their parents,” said study author Jennifer Lindwall, PhD, of St Jude Children’s Research Hospital and Children’s Hospital of Colorado.
The 171 parent/child pairs were randomized to receive a child-targeted intervention, a child and parent intervention, or standard care. The child intervention consisted of massage and humor therapy, and the parent intervention included massage and relaxation/imagery training.
The investigators measured psychological distress and positive affect from the time of admission for a child’s SCT until 6 weeks after the procedure.
The team also measured depression, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), and benefit-finding (potential positive outcomes that result from enduring a difficult experience) at the time of admission and 24 weeks after.
There were no significant differences among the 3 groups with regard to measures of parental distress. And distress decreased significantly from baseline to week 6.
Improvements also occurred over time with regard to positive affect. However, parents in the child/parent-intervention group and child-only-intervention group experienced significant benefits over the standard-care group.
On the other hand, there were no significant differences among the 3 groups with regard to depression, PTSD, and benefit-finding.
Parents from all groups experienced significant decreases in depression and PTSD from baseline to the 24-week mark. And they showed significant increases in benefit-finding.
“In many respects, a parent’s distress parallels the child’s distress,” Dr Lindwall said. “As things get better for the child, they get better for the parent as well.”
Dr Lindwall noted that, although this study suggests resiliency is the norm, there are parents who remain distressed as a result of their child’s illness.
“Our challenge now is to predict which parents are at the highest risk for difficulties,” she said, “and to design interventions that can help these parents cope during their child’s medical challenges.”
