Effective Counselling of Pre-Natal Diagnosis of Serious Heart Disease – An Aid to Maternal Bonding?

Abstract

With increasing pre-natal diagnosis of major anomalies, it is important that parents so affected have the opportunity to understand the nature of the abnormality, its significance and effects on the infant's and child's functioning and survival, and the need for intervention. Such information together with working through the grieving process during the latter part of the pregnancy may help with the handling of the infant once born and further improve their bonding with their baby, despite the need for, at times, life-threatening intervention. Further objective studies are required to confirm these preliminary observations.