Author(s): Silva, Neuza ; Carona, Carlos ; Crespo, Carla ; Canavarro, Maria Cristina
Date: 2015
Persistent ID: https://hdl.handle.net/10316/45410
Origin: Estudo Geral - Universidade de Coimbra
Subject(s): Quality of Life; Children and adolescents; Asthma; Meta-analysis; Parents; • Parents • Patient- and parent-reported outcomes
Introduction. This meta-analytic review was conducted to estimate the magnitude of quality of life (QoL) impairments in children/adolescents with asthma and their parents. Method. A systematic search in four electronic databases revealed 15 quantitative studies published between 1994-2013 that directly compared the QoL of 7- to 18-year-old asthma patients/parents to community/healthy controls. Pooled mean differences (MD) with 95% CI were estimated using the inverse-variance random-effects method. Results. Pediatric asthma patients (n = 1,797) presented lower overall QoL (MD = -7.48, CI = -10.67/ -4.29), physical functioning (MD = -9.36, CI = -11.85/ -6.86), psychological functioning (MD = -5.00, CI = -7.17/ -2.82), and social functioning (MD = -3.76, CI = -5.80/ -1.72), compared to controls (n = 13,266). For parents (666 cases and 7,328 controls), asthma was associated with lower physical functioning (MD = -10.15, CI = -12.21/ -8.08). Between-studies heterogeneity was explained by type of informant and selection of controls. Conclusion. The ascertainment of the magnitude of QoL impairments and the most affected QoL dimensions for pediatric asthma patients/parents may contribute to the outlining of realistic goals for multidisciplinary interventions in healthcare settings and evaluate its cost-effectiveness.
This study was supported by the Relationships, Development & Health Research Group of the R&D Unit Cognitive-Behavioral Center for Research and Intervention (PEst-OE/PSI/UI0730/2014) and by a PhD Scholarship from the Portuguese Foundation for Science and Technology (SFRH/BD/69885/2010). The authors have no other relevant affiliations or financial involvement with any organization or entity with a financial interest in or financial conflict with the subject matter or materials discussed in the manuscript apart from those disclosed.
