Perceived Parental Style Is Better in Adults with Congenital Heart Disease than Healthy Controls—But There Is Work Left to Do in Specific Subgroups

Objective: To compare perceived parental style in a large cohort of adults with congenital heart disease (ACHD) to healthy reference (RCs). Furthermore, factors associated with perceived parental style were determined in ACHD. Patients and Methods: From September 2016 to April 2019, 912 ACHD (34.9 ± 10.4 years, 45% female) and 175 RCs (35.8 ± 12.2 years, 53% female) completed the Measure of Parental Style (MOPS) questionnaire. Results: After adjusting for age and sex, ACHD recalled the parental style of both their parents to be significantly less indifferent (mother: ACHD: 1.2 ± 0.01 vs. RC: 1.3 ± 0.03, p < 0.001; father: ACHD: 1.3 ± 0.02 vs. RC: 1.7 ± 0.05, p < 0.001), overcontrolling (mother: ACHD: 1.6 ± 0.63 vs. RC: 1.9 ± 0.62, p < 0.001; father: ACHD: 1.4 ± 0.52 vs. RC: 1.5 ± 0.50, p < 0.001), and abusive (mother: ACHD: 1.2 ± 0.47 vs. RC: 1.4 ± 0.46, p < 0.001; father: ACHD: 1.3 ± 0.59 vs. RC: 1.5 ± 0.57, p < 0.001) than healthy controls did. In ACHD, female sex (β = 0.068, p = 0.017), higher age (β = 0.005, p = 0.003), Ebstein anomaly (β = 0.170, p = 0.005), and cyanotic CHD (β = 0.336, p = 0.004) contribute to perceiving the parental style of at least one of the parents negatively. Conclusions: While ACHD appear to recall the parental style to be less negative, subgroup analysis revealed specific patients at risk. These findings point to the need for interventions in specific subgroups susceptible to psychological distress.