Health-related Quality of Life in Newly Diagnosed Pediatric Patients With Celiac Disease

Objectives: Celiac disease (CD) is a common chronic condition with potential adverse physical and psychosocial implications for affected children. The study purpose was to characterize health-related quality of life (HRQOL) in a large sample of pediatric patients with newly diagnosed CD using the PedsQL 4.0 Generic Core Scales, and compare it to that of healthy children and children with nonceliac gastrointestinal (GI) conditions using historic data. Methods: The PedsQL was administered to 159 children with newly diagnosed CD and their parents at either the time of diagnostic esophagogastroduodenoscopy or before their initial dietitian appointment for gluten-free diet teaching. Mean parent-report and self-report PedsQL summary and subscale scores were calculated, then compared to published means from a sample of healthy children and a sample of children with nonceliac GI symptoms using 1-sample t tests. Results: Compared to the healthy children, those with newly diagnosed CD had lower Total Scores, Physical Health, Psychosocial Health, Emotional Functioning, and School Functioning on parent report (P 
Source: Journal of Pediatric Gastroenterology and Nutrition - Category: Gastroenterology Tags: Original Article: Gastroenterology: Celiac Disease Source Type: research