Factors influencing anxiety in mothers of low birth weight infants

Abstract

Low birth weight (LBW) infants pose a challenge for developing countries. Mothers of LBW are thus at risk of psychological stress and postpartum depression. This study was to identify the correlation between mothers' characteristics and their anxiety about having hospitalized low birth weight infants. This study used a descriptive correlation design and involved 90 respondents who met the inclusion criteria. The result of this study indicated that most of the mothers were categorized in non-risk age, unemployed or housewife, and having secondary education. Overall, the respondents showed mild anxiety and no significant correlation between mothers' characteristics and their anxiety (P>0.05). However, there was a significant correlation between her income and mother's level of anxiety (P<0.05). The conclusion could be use as the basic data for developing the program related to health promotion in overcoming the anxiety in LBW infant's mothers.