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Maternal stress, family and health care of twins: With two case summaries of infants who died during the course of the study
Author(s) -
TAYLOR E.M.,
EMERY J.L.
Publication year - 1988
Publication title -
children and society
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.538
H-Index - 58
eISSN - 1099-0860
pISSN - 0951-0605
DOI - 10.1111/j.1099-0860.1988.tb00558.x
Subject(s) - singleton , anxiety , medicine , depression (economics) , psychology , pediatrics , demography , pregnancy , psychiatry , genetics , macroeconomics , sociology , economics , biology
SUMMARY. The family and professional care of a sequential series of 84 pairs of twins was compared with the care of singleton infants matched by birth date alone and with singleton infants matched demographically. Twin babies received more health visitor, but less family doctor, care than singletons; though any additional support had disappeared after the first three months. The findings suggested that increased levels of anxiety and depression (self‐assessed) in mothers of twins are not specific to twinning but related to the total demands of young children. Two babies died during the course of the study, both were twins, presented as cot deaths, and occurred in excessively stressed families. The findings of the confidential enquiries into both these deaths are presented.