{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,6,4]],"date-time":"2026-06-04T06:05:07Z","timestamp":1780553107598,"version":"3.54.1"},"reference-count":32,"publisher":"Frontiers Media SA","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2026,6,4]],"date-time":"2026-06-04T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1780531200000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"content-domain":{"domain":["frontiersin.org"],"crossmark-restriction":true},"short-container-title":["Front. Psychiatry"],"abstract":"<jats:sec>\n                    <jats:title>Objective<\/jats:title>\n                    <jats:p>The aim of this study was to investigate the factors associated with the occurrence of screen-positive post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms in fathers of preterm infants in the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) and the effects of the application of kangaroo care measures.<\/jats:p>\n                  <\/jats:sec>\n                  <jats:sec>\n                    <jats:title>Methods<\/jats:title>\n                    <jats:p>\n                      This study comprised two components: a retrospective cross-sectional analysis to identify factors associated with PTSD in fathers of NICU preterm infants, and a prospective, quasi-experimental pre\u2013post intervention study to evaluate the effects of kangaroo care. For the cross-sectional part, 251 fathers were included and grouped based on the Chinese version of the Perinatal Posttraumatic Stress Disorder Questionnaire (PPQ-C) scores (screen-positive group,\n                      <jats:italic>n<\/jats:italic>\n                      = 62; screen-negative group,\n                      <jats:italic>n<\/jats:italic>\n                      \u00a0=\u00a0189). Univariate and multivariate logistic regression analyses were performed to identify independent risk factors, and a nomogram prediction model was constructed and internally validated using receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves. For the intervention part, kangaroo care was implemented, and its effects were analyzed by comparing PTSD symptom rates, illness uncertainty, social support, and depressive symptom scores before and after the intervention.\n                    <\/jats:p>\n                  <\/jats:sec>\n                  <jats:sec>\n                    <jats:title>Results<\/jats:title>\n                    <jats:p>\n                      Significant differences were found in illness uncertainty, social support, depressed mood, infant birth weight, paternal occupation, and education level (\n                      <jats:italic>p<\/jats:italic>\n                      \u00a0&amp;lt;\u00a00.05). Logistic regression confirmed these as independent risk factors [odds ratio (OR) = 1.053, 0.893, 1.300, 2.564, 2.939, 2.389,\n                      <jats:italic>p<\/jats:italic>\n                      \u00a0&amp;lt;\u00a00.05]. The prediction model [area under the curve (AUC) = 0.872, 95% confidence interval (CI): 0.817\u20130.927] showed high accuracy. After kangaroo care, the rate of screen-positive PTSD symptoms, illness uncertainty, social support, and depressed mood improved significantly (\n                      <jats:italic>p<\/jats:italic>\n                      \u00a0&amp;lt;\u00a00.05).\n                    <\/jats:p>\n                  <\/jats:sec>\n                  <jats:sec>\n                    <jats:title>Conclusion<\/jats:title>\n                    <jats:p>The risk of screening positive for PTSD symptoms and uncertainty of illness, social support, depressive symptoms, child birth weight, occupation, and education level are all independent risk factors. Screening high-risk groups using a nomogram prediction model and implementing kangaroo care interventions were associated with improvements in these psychological outcomes. These findings provide a preliminary theoretical and empirical basis for clinical efforts to mitigate paternal PTSD risk, though further controlled studies are needed to confirm causal efficacy.<\/jats:p>\n                  <\/jats:sec>","DOI":"10.3389\/fpsyt.2026.1670036","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2026,6,4]],"date-time":"2026-06-04T05:40:39Z","timestamp":1780551639000},"update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3389\/crossmark-policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":0,"title":["A retrospective study on post-traumatic stress disorder in fathers of preterm infants in the NICU and the effectiveness of kangaroo care intervention"],"prefix":"10.3389","volume":"17","author":[{"given":"Changying","family":"Zhu","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"Neonatology, The First Hospital of Putian","place":["Putian, Fujian, China"]}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Zhenzhen","family":"Li","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"School of Nursing, Putian University","place":["Putian, Fujian, China"]}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Jianmin","family":"Zheng","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Neonatology, The First Hospital of Putian","place":["Putian, Fujian, China"]}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Dongxue","family":"Chen","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Neonatology, The First Hospital of Putian","place":["Putian, Fujian, China"]}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Ping","family":"Chen","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Neonatology, The First Hospital of Putian","place":["Putian, Fujian, China"]}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Jianlan","family":"Chen","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Xiamen Xianyue Hospital(Department of Nursing), Xianyue Hospital Affiliated with Xiamen Medical College, Fujian Psychiatric Center, Fujian Clinical Research Center for Mental Disorders","place":["Xiamen, Fujian, China"]}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]}],"member":"1965","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2026,6,4]]},"reference":[{"key":"B1","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.3390\/ijerph18168471","article-title":"A survey of neonatal nurses perspectives on voice use and auditory needs with premature infants in the NICU","volume":"18","author":"Smith","year":"2021","journal-title":"Int J Environ Res Public Health"},{"key":"B2","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1002\/imhj.22086","article-title":"Preterm infant mental health in the neonatal intensive care unit: a review of research on NICU parent-infant interactions and maternal sensitivity","volume":"44","author":"Hartzell","year":"2023","journal-title":"Infant Ment Health 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