Perinatal and behavioral characteristics of neonates born to multirisk families.

The perinatal health status and behavioral characteristics of 47 newborns of multirisk (psychiatric and socioenvironmental) mothers who received either comprehensive intervention services or community-based services are described. Obstetric and postnatal health measures did not differ between groups, but there was a tendency for infants of comprehensively treated women to be healthier. Both groups were similar on Brazelton Neonatal Behavioral Assessment Scale cluster scores at 3 to 5 days of age. However, by 1 month of age, there was very little progress in Orientation and Autonomic Regulation capacities, and in some cases the infants' performance declined markedly on other clusters. The infants who did not receive comprehensive services had significantly less optimal motor performance and autonomic regulation scores. That worrisome patterns of adaptation were detected quite early in life suggests that these may be a particularly vulnerable subset of newborns.