Mental health and psychological adaptation on parents of children with neuromuscular diseases

Abstract

The diagnosis of a pediatric neuromuscular disease has a psychological impact on parents. The study aimed to describe mental health and psychological adaptation in parents of children with neuromuscular diseases. The evaluation of parents (n = 35) through the Psychological Adaptation Scale and Adult Self-Report Questionnaire showed that (a) 82.4% of the participants had an adequate level of psychological adaptation; (b) parents presented high levels of mental health problems, (c) significant correlations were found between the mental health problems and psychological adaptation. This study highlights the need for psychological interventions which aim to promote psychological adaptation to NMD diagnoses and protect parental mental health.