title: Do environmental barriers affect the parent-reported quality of life of children and adolescents with cerebral palsy?
abstract: Physical, social, and attitudinal environment may affect the quality of life (QoL) of children and adolescents with cerebral palsy (CP). Participants in this study included parents of 206 children and adolescents with CP (55.8% males) aged 8-18 years (M=11.96, SD=3). Distribution according to the Gross Motor Function Classification System (GMFCS) was 24.3% level I, 18% level II, 18% level III, 12.6% level IV, and 27.2 level V. Environmental barriers were assessed with the Spanish version of the European Child Environment Questionnaire (ECEQ), and QoL was assessed with the KIDSCREEN parents' version. The results of the correlation analysis revealed that GMFCS level, IQ, and type of schooling are significantly correlated with QoL. Barriers were also associated with QoL. A series of hierarchical regression analyses indicated that, after controlling for the effect of child and parent's variables, barriers at home and at school significantly contribute to QoL. These findings underscore the importance of providing interventions to produce environmental changes that contribute to the improvement of QoL.
authors.affiliation: Institute on Community Integration (INICO), Faculty of Psychology, University of Salamanca, Salamanca, Spain. Electronic address: badia@usal.es.
authors.forename: Marta
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Badia
authors.affiliation: Faculty of Psychology, University of Salamanca, Salamanca, Spain. Electronic address: orgaz@usal.es.
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Begoña Orgaz
authors.affiliation: Institute on Community Integration (INICO), Faculty of Psychology, University of Salamanca, Salamanca, Spain. Electronic address: mgv@usal.es.
authors.forename: María
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Gómez-Vela
authors.affiliation: Institute on Community Integration (INICO), Faculty of Psychology, University of Salamanca, Salamanca, Spain. Electronic address: verdugo@usal.es.
authors.forename: Miguel A
authors.initials: MA
authors.lastname: Verdugo
authors.affiliation: Department of Social Psychology, University of Salamanca, Spain. Electronic address: ullan@usal.es.
authors.forename: Ana M
authors.initials: AM
authors.lastname: Ullán
authors.affiliation: Health of Children, UFRN/FACISA, Brazil. Electronic address: egmarlongo@yahoo.es.
authors.forename: Egmar
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Longo
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D001294:Attitude to Health; D002547:Cerebral Palsy / Q000150:complications / Q000523:psychology*; D002648:Child; D004519:Education, Special; D004777:Environment; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008607:Intellectual Disability / Q000150:complications / Q000523:psychology*; D007361:Intelligence Tests; D008282:Mainstreaming, Education; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010290:Parents; D012929:Psychological Distance; D011788:Quality of Life / Q000523:psychology*; D012574:Schools; D012720:Severity of Illness Index; D012931:Social Environment; D055815:Young Adult
keywords: Adolescents; Cerebral palsy; Children; Environmental barriers; Quality of life