Features of dyadic relationships in the “mother–child” system at the stage of accepting the role of a mother as a risk factor for dysontogenesis in young children

Context and relevance. The study of the features of the formation of the “mother–child” system from the standpoint of accepting the role of the mother of a newborn child with disease as one of the factors in dysontogenesis in young children at the present stage is poorly studied. Objective. The aim of the study is to describe the features of dyadic relationships at the stage of dyad formation at the birth of a child with a disease and to establish an association between the attitudes towards the newborn and level of neuroticism in the mother. Methods and materials. The study involves 125 “mother–child” dyads united by the disease of the newborn: the group “congenital malformations” — 46 dyads, the group “disorders of the adaptation period” — 52 dyads and the group “intrauterine infection” — 27 dyads. The methodological instruments include: “Pregnancy Relationship Test”, clinical questionnaire on neurotic states and “Perinatal Anxiety Screening Scale”. Statistical processing methods: comparative (U-Mann–Whitney test, φ*-Fisher’s angular transformation) and correlation analysis (Spearman’s rank correlation coefficient). Results. The correlations between the features of the attitude to the newborn and all types of neurotic states in the mother are described. An optimal attitude towards the newborn can be combined with high rates of mother’s asthenization at the birth of a child with congenital malformations. Differences were recorded in the indicators of the “mother–child” dyad formed on a nosological basis in the groups “Congenital malformations” and “Intrauterine infections”. In the “Intrauterine infections” group of women, acute and obsessive anxiety, social anxiety, phobias, as well as obsessive perfectionism and adaptation problems were more pronounced. Conclusions. The results obtained convincingly demonstrate that the features of dyadic relationships in the “mother–child” system at the stage of assuming the role of mother can be considered as a risk factor for dysontogenesis in young children. The formation of an individual comprehensive program of medical and psychological support for the “mother–child” dyad at the stage of its formation is designed to reduce possible risks of mental dysontogenesis.