Maternal stress and presurgical infant hospitalization

The aim of this study was to evaluate the level of stress in mothers accompanying children hospitalized to have elective surgical procedures performed, relating it to demographic variables of the child and previous experience in this context. Fifty-four mothers accompanying children hospitalized to have elective surgery performed participated in the study. The instruments used were the Lipp Stress Symptoms Inventory for adults, and a questionnaire drawn up for the study to survey the children's variables. The results pointed out tht 82% of the sample presented stress, with the stage of resistance and psychological symptoms prevailing. A statistically significant relationship was observed between the presence of maternal stress and the fact that the child had no previous experience of surgery (p=0.052). On the other hand, no statistically significant differences were observed between the presence of maternal stress and the child's age and gender. It was concluded that the impact of surgical procedures affects the child and family, which must be taken into consideration so that interventions can be proposed for pre-operative preparation.

Child, hospitalized; Stress; Mothers