Faculty Bibliography

OBJECTIVES/OBJECTIVE:To assess parent decision-making regarding dosing tools, a known contributor to medication dosing errors, by evaluating parent dosing tool use, beliefs, and access, and the role of health literacy, with a focus on dosing cups, which are associated with an increased risk of multifold overdose. STUDY DESIGN/METHODS:Cross-sectional analysis of data collected for randomized controlled study in 3 urban pediatric clinics. English/Spanish-speaking parents (n = 493) of children ≤8 years of age enrolled. OUTCOMES/RESULTS:reported tool use, beliefs, and access. Predictor variable: health literacy (Newest Vital Sign; limited [0-3], adequate [4-6]). Multiple logistic regression analyses conducted. RESULTS:Over two-thirds of parents had limited health literacy. Oral syringes (62%) and dosing cups (22%) were most commonly used. Overall, 24% believed dosing cups were the best tool type for dosing accuracy; 99% reported having access to ≥1 dosing tools with standard measurement markings. Parents with limited health literacy had greater odds of dosing cup use (limited vs adequate: aOR = 2.4 [1.2-4.6]). Parents who believed that dosing cups are best for accuracy had greater odds of dosing cup use (aOR = 16.3 [9.0-29.3]); this belief mediated health literacy-effects on dosing cup use. CONCLUSIONS:Factors associated with dosing tool choice, including parent health literacy and beliefs are important to consider in the design of interventions to reduce dosing errors; future larger-scale studies addressing this issue are needed.

OBJECTIVE:Feeding concerns are common in the first 2 years of life and typically reflect maternal perceptions occurring within the larger context of the parent-child relationship. We aimed to determine whether (1) maternal depressive systems predicted perceived picky eating, mediated by maternal negative perceptions; (2) receipt of the Video Interaction Project (VIP) parenting intervention impacted perceived picky eating through this pathway; and (3) perceived picky eating was associated with child growth or subsequent dietary patterns. METHODS:We performed a partial longitudinal analysis of 187 low-income, predominantly Hispanic mother-child dyads enrolled in a randomized controlled trial of the VIP. Mother-infant dyads were enrolled postpartum in an urban public hospital. Participants randomized to the VIP met with an interventionist on days of well-child visits; sessions were designed to facilitate interactions in play and shared reading through provision of learning materials and review of videotaped parent-child interaction; the curriculum did not contain feeding-specific elements. We used structural equation modeling to determine direct, indirect, and total effects of maternal depressive symptoms, maternal negative perceptions, and the VIP on perceived picky eating. We then tested associations between perceived picky eating and (1) child growth, using multivariable linear regression and multilevel modeling; and (2) subsequent child dietary consumption, using multivariable multinomial logistic regression. RESULTS:Maternal depressive symptoms had significant total effects on negative maternal perceptions (β = 0.32, p < 0.001) and perceived picky eating (β = 0.21, p < 0.01) after controlling for potential confounders. This effect was partially mediated by maternal negative perceptions (indirect effect: β = 0.06, p = 0.04). When used in the model as the predictor, the VIP had a significant total effect on perceived picky eating (β = -0.16, p = 0.02), which was partially mediated by maternal depressive symptoms and negative perceptions (indirect effect: β = -0.05, p = 0.02). Perceived picky eating was not associated with child diet at age 2 years or adiposity from 6 months to 3 years. CONCLUSION/CONCLUSIONS:Maternal concerns about picky eating may reflect deeper depressive symptoms and negative perceptions of her child's behavior. Interventions designed to facilitate positive parenting in general may lessen feeding-specific concerns, such as picky eating. Although reassurance about growth and nutritional outcomes for children perceived as picky eaters is appropriate, clinicians should also consider probing for underlying symptoms of depression that could lead to eating concerns.

OBJECTIVE:To examine associations between parent health literacy, discharge plan complexity, and parent comprehension of and adherence to inpatient discharge instructions. STUDY DESIGN/METHODS:This was a prospective cohort study of English/Spanish-speaking parents (n = 165) of children ≤12 years discharged on ≥1 daily medication from an urban, public hospital. Outcome variables were parent comprehension (survey) of and adherence (survey, in-person dosing assessment, chart review) to discharge instructions. Predictor variables included low parent health literacy (Newest Vital Sign score 0-3) and plan complexity. Generalized estimating equations were used to account for the assessment of multiple types of comprehension and adherence errors for each subject, adjusting for ethnicity, language, child age, length of stay, and chronic disease status. Similar analyses were performed to assess for mediation and moderation. RESULTS:Error rates were highest for comprehension of medication side effects (50%), adherence to medication dose (34%), and return precaution (78%) instructions. Comprehension errors were associated with adherence errors (aOR, 8.7; 95% CI, 5.9-12.9). Discharge plan complexity was associated with comprehension (aOR, 7.0; 95% CI, 5.4-9.1) and adherence (aOR, 5.5; 95% CI, 4.0-7.6) errors. Low health literacy was indirectly associated with adherence errors through comprehension errors. The association between plan complexity and comprehension errors was greater in parents with low (aOR, 8.3; 95% CI, 6.2-11.2) compared with adequate (aOR, 3.8; 95% CI, 2.2-6.5) health literacy (interaction term P = .004). CONCLUSIONS:Parent health literacy and discharge plan complexity play key roles in comprehension and adherence errors. Future work will focus on the development of health literacy-informed interventions to promote discharge plan comprehension.

OBJECTIVE:To investigate pathways by which interventions that promote shared reading and play help prevent child behavior problems. We examined whether family processes associated with the family investment pathway (eg, parental cognitive stimulation) and the family stress pathway (eg, mothers' psychosocial functioning) mediated impacts of a pediatric-based preventive intervention on child behavior. STUDY DESIGN/METHODS:The sample included 362 low-income mothers and their children who participated in a randomized controlled trial of the Video Interaction Project, a pediatrics-based preventive intervention that promotes parent-child interactions in the context of shared reading and play. Parent-child dyads were randomly assigned to group at birth. Three mediators-parental cognitive stimulation, maternal stress about the parent-child relationship, and maternal depressive symptoms-were assessed at child ages 6 and 36 months. The outcome, child externalizing behaviors, was assessed at 36 months. We used a series of path analytic models to examine how these family processes, separately or together, mediated the impacts of the Video Interaction Project on child behavioral outcomes. RESULTS:Intervention impacts on child behavior were mediated by enhancements in cognitive stimulation and by improvements in mothers' psychosocial functioning. A sequential mediation model showed that Video Interaction Project impacts on cognitive stimulation at 6 months were associated with later decreases in mothers' stress about the parent-child relationship and that this pathway mediated intervention impacts on child behavioral outcomes at 3 years of age (P = .023). CONCLUSIONS:Using an experimental design, this study identifies pathways by which parent-child interactions in shared reading and play can improve child behavioral outcomes. TRIAL REGISTRATION/BACKGROUND:Clinicaltrials.gov: NCT00212576.

OBJECTIVE:Shared reading is believed to enhance parent-child relationships, but the extent to which it reduces harsh parenting is understudied. Associations between early shared reading and subsequent harsh parenting were investigated. METHODS:Data from a national urban birth cohort were used to estimate associations between mother-reported shared reading at ages 1 and 3 years and harsh parenting-based on a composite of psychological and physical aggression subscales of a validated self-report instrument-when the children were at ages 3 and 5 years. The authors used multivariable linear regression and generalized estimating equations to account for repeated observations. Given potential inverse associations between shared reading and child disruptive behaviors, which can trigger harsh parenting, the authors investigated the extent to which children's behavior at age 3 years mediated the association between shared reading at age 1 year and harsh parenting at age 5 years. RESULTS:This study included 2165 mother-child dyads. Thirty-four percent and 52% of mothers reported daily reading at ages 1 and 3 years. In adjusted models, shared reading at age 1 year was associated with less harsh parenting at age 3 years. Similarly, shared reading at age 3 years was associated with less harsh parenting at age 5 years. These associations remained significant in lagged repeated-measures models. Decreased disruptive behaviors partially mediated the association between shared reading at age 1 year and harsh parenting at age 5 years. CONCLUSION/CONCLUSIONS:Shared reading predicted less harsh parenting in a national urban sample. These findings suggest that shared reading contributes to an important aspect of the parent-child relationship and that some of the association operates through enhanced child behaviors.

OBJECTIVE:To determine whether prenatal social support was associated with infant adiposity in the first 18 months of life in a low-income, Hispanic sample, known to be at high risk of early child obesity. STUDY DESIGN/METHODS:We performed a longitudinal analysis of 262 low-income, Hispanic mother-infant pairs in the control group of the Starting Early child obesity prevention trial. Prenatal social support was measured using an item from the Maternal Social Support Index. We used multilevel modeling to predict weight-for-length z-score trajectories from birth to age 18 months and logistic regression to predict macrosomia and overweight status at ages 6, 12, and 18 months. RESULTS:High prenatal social support was independently associated with lower infant adiposity trajectories from birth to age 18 months (B = -0.40; 95% CI, -0.63 to -0.16), a lower odds of macrosomia (aOR = 0.35; 95% CI, 0.15-0.80), and a lower odds of overweight at ages 12 (aOR = 0.28; 95% CI, 0.10-0.74) and 18 months (aOR = 0.35; 95% CI, 0.14-0.89). Prenatal social support was not significantly associated with overweight status at age 6 months. CONCLUSIONS:Prenatal social support may protect against excessive infant adiposity and overweight in low-income, Hispanic families. Further research is needed to elucidate mechanisms underlying these associations and to inform preventive strategies beginning in pregnancy.

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES/OBJECTIVE:Pregnancy, infancy, and toddlerhood are sensitive times in which families are particularly vulnerable to household food insecurity and when disparities in child obesity emerge. Understanding obesity-promoting infant-feeding beliefs, styles, and practices in the context of food insecurity could better inform both food insecurity and child obesity prevention interventions and policy guidelines. METHODS:= 100) with infants in the first 2 years of life, all of whom were participants in a randomized controlled trial of an early child obesity prevention intervention called the Starting Early Program. Bilingual English-Spanish interviewers conducted semistructured qualitative interviews, which were audio recorded, transcribed, and translated. By using the constant comparative method, transcripts were coded through an iterative process of textual analysis until thematic saturation was reached. RESULTS:Three key themes emerged: (1) contributors to financial strain included difficulty meeting basic needs, job instability, and high vulnerability specific to pregnancy, infancy, and immigration status; (2) effects on infant feeding included decreased breastfeeding due to perceived poor maternal diet, high stress, and limiting of healthy foods; and (3) coping strategies included both home- and community-level strategies. CONCLUSIONS:Stakeholders in programs and policies to prevent poverty-related disparities in child obesity should consider and address the broader context by which food insecurity is associated with contributing beliefs, styles, and practices. Potential strategies include addressing misconceptions about maternal diet and breast milk adequacy, stress management, building social support networks, and connecting to supplemental nutrition assistance programs.

BACKGROUND:Pediatric professionals promote shared reading to facilitate school readiness yet relatively few studies examine how parents from underserved communities consider this issue in their daily lives. We sought to understand shared reading within the broader context of parenting among Latino parents. METHODS:We conducted in-depth interviews, purposively sampling Spanish-speaking, Latina mothers of children age ≤ 3 years from an urban Federally Qualified Health Center. Interviews were recorded, transcribed, and analyzed iteratively. We allowed themes to emerge from data rather than impose an a priori framework. We sought disconfirming evidence within interviews and collected additional data to ensure no new themes were identified (saturation). RESULTS:We achieved saturation after 12 interviews. The median child age was 1.4 years. We identified 4 major themes: (1) All participants reported engaging in literacy promoting activities such as conversations, storytelling, play, and singing even if they did not read to their children daily. (2) Parents' attitudes regarding early learning and development influenced the extent to which parents engaged in shared reading with their child. (3) Participants described feelings that they ought to read daily with their children but were not and cited a variety of barriers. (4) Parents who engaged in frequent shared reading described it as a joyful and relaxed experience; parents who did not engage in shared reading described reading as instructing children or engaging in drills (e.g. teaching letters). CONCLUSION/CONCLUSIONS:Urban, Latina mothers who did not read regularly with their children nonetheless recognized its importance suggesting that existing programs have raised awareness even among underserved families. Refinement of messaging may be needed to move past raising awareness to facilitating shared reading for some parents.

Attendance at well-child visits (WCVs) is a sine qua non of preventive care. We hypothesized that Reach Out and Read (ROR) would be associated with better WCV attendance. Parents of children 76 to 72 months at 8 clinics who did not yet have ROR reported how many WCVs their child had attended in the previous year; separate samples at the same clinics were interviewed 16 months after the ROR program was instituted. Comparing 267 parents before ROR and 254 after, the percentage who had attended the minimum number of WCVs required by the American Academy of Pediatrics periodicity schedule rose from 67.4% (180/267) to 78.3% (199/254; P < .01). This difference remained significant after controlling for multiple potential confounding factors (estimated odds ratio = 2.1, 95% confidence interval = 1.3-3.5). The largest differences were among Latino children and children of less-educated parents. Programs to enhance early literacy may increase attendance at WCVs among at-risk families.