Quality of life for children with functional abdominal pain: a comparison study of patients' and parents' perceptions.
OBJECTIVE
Children with chronic abdominal pain of nonorganic origin, termed functional abdominal pain (FAP), experience school absences and social withdrawal and report impaired physical ability. The aim of this study was to assess patients' and parents' perceptions of health-related quality of life (QoL) for children with FAP.


METHODS
Between October 2002 and November 2003, 209 children (including 125 girls; age: 11.2 +/- 3.5 years) and 209 parents were recruited from a pediatric referral center. At the time of their initial evaluations, participants completed a validated, health-related QoL instrument (Pediatric Quality of Life Inventory), which was scored on a scale of 0 (poor) through 100 (best). Children with FAP (n = 65) and their families were compared with control groups of healthy children (n = 46) and children with histologically proven inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) (n = 42) or gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) (n = 56).


RESULTS
Children with FAP had self-reported QoL scores (score: 78) that were similar to those for children with GERD (score: 80) or IBD (score: 84). Children with FAP had lower QoL scores than did healthy children (score: 88). Parents of children with FAP reported lower QoL scores, compared with their children's scores (scores: 70 vs 78).


CONCLUSIONS
Children with FAP reported lower QoL, compared with their healthy peers, and had the same QoL scores as did children with IBD or GERD. Parents' perceptions of QoL for children with FAP were lower than their children's self-reported scores. These findings highlight the clinical significance of FAP and may provide insight into one facet of the disease's biopsychosocial etiology.
Youssef
Nader N
NN
Center for Pediatric Functional Gastrointestinal and Motility Disorders, Goryeb Children's Hospital/Atlantic Health System, Morristown, NJ 07962, USA. nader.youssef@ahsys.org
Murphy
Thomas G
TG
Langseder
Annette L
AL
Rosh
Joel R
JR
D015746:Abdominal Pain / Q000523:psychology*; D000293:Adolescent; D001294:Attitude to Health; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D002908:Chronic Disease; D005260:Female; D005764:Gastroesophageal Reflux / Q000523:psychology; D006801:Humans; D015212:Inflammatory Bowel Diseases / Q000523:psychology; D008297:Male; D010290:Parents / Q000523:psychology*; D010465:Perception; D011788:Quality of Life