Correlation between perceived vulnerability and parenting stress in mothers of children with congenital heart disease

Objective To explore the current perceived vulnerability and parenting stress (PS) in mothers of children with congenital heart disease (CHD) and to analyze the correlation between the two. Methods The mothers of 176 children with congenital heart disease admitted in the 2nd Affiliated Hospital and Yuying Children's Hospital of Wenzhou Medical University from September 2017 to September 2018 were selected using convenient sampling and investigated with the General Information Questionnaire, Child Vulnerability Scale (CVS) and Parenting Stress Index-Short Form (PSI-SF) . Results Totally 176 questionnaires were distributed and collected, including 168 valid questionnaires, accounting for a recovery rate of 95.45%. The CVS score of the mothers of CHD children averaged (8.77±3.59) ; their PSI-SF scores saveraged (100.74±10.55) ; there was statistically significant difference in PSI-SF scores between mothers with different educational background and single child or not (P<0.05) ; the total CVS score was positively correlated with the total PSI-SF score and the scores of its various dimensions (r=0.262-0.569) ; multivariate stepwise regression analysis showed that mothers with different educational background, single child, and the total score of CVS were factors of parenting stress, except the effect of general information, the total score of CVS can explain 17% of the total variation. Conclusions The perceived vulnerability and PS of the mothers of CHD children stand at high levels. Their perceived vulnerability is positively correlated with their PS. Medical and nursing workers may improve their PS by reducing their perceived vulnerability, thus providing better family care for CHD children. Key words: Heart defects, congenital; Mother; Perceived vulnerability; Parenting stress