Psychological medicine
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Psychological medicine · Nov 2004
Anxiety and depression in parents 4-9 years after the loss of a child owing to a malignancy: a population-based follow-up.
Some consider the loss of a child as the most stressful life event. When the death is caused by a malignancy, the parents are commonly exposed not only to their own loss, but also to the protracted physical and emotional suffering of the child. We investigated parental risk of anxiety and depression 4-9 years after the loss of a child owing to a malignancy. ⋯ Psychological morbidity in bereaved parents decreases to levels similar to those among non-bereaved parents 7-9 years after the loss. Bereaved mothers and parents who lose a child 9 years or older have on average an excess risk for long-term psychological distress.