We found a match
Your institution may have access to this item. Find your institution then sign in to continue.
- Title
Association between nutritional status and subjective health status in chronically ill children attending special schools.
- Authors
Joosten, Koen; Velde, Kelly; Joosten, Pieter; Rutten, Hans; Hulst, Jessie; Dulfer, Karolijn; van der Velde, Kelly
- Abstract
<bold>Purpose: </bold>In hospitalized children with a chronic disease, malnutrition was associated with a lower subjective health status. In outpatient children with a chronic disease attending special schools, this association has never been studied. The aim of this study was to assess the association between nutritional status and subjective health status in chronically ill children attending special schools.<bold>Methods: </bold>Overall, 642 children, median age 9.8 years (IQR 7.7-11.5), 60 % male, 72 % Caucasian, were included in this prospective study in nine special schools for chronically ill children in the Netherlands. Overall malnutrition was assessed as: acute malnutrition (<-2 SDS for weight for height (WFH)) and chronic malnutrition (<-2 SDS for height for age). The malnutrition risk was assessed with the nutritional risk-screening tool STRONGkids. Subjective health status was assessed with EQ-5D.<bold>Results: </bold>Overall, 16 % of the children had overall malnutrition: 3 % acute and 13 % chronic malnutrition. Nurses reported 'some/severe problems' on the health status dimensions mobility (15 %), self-care (17 %), usual activities (19 %), pain/discomfort (22 %), and anxiety/depression (22 %) in chronically ill children. Their mean visual analogue scale score (VAS) was 73.0 (SD 11.1). Malnutrition, medication usage, and younger age explained 38 % of the variance of the VAS score.<bold>Conclusions: </bold>The presence of overall malnutrition in chronically ill children attending special schools was associated with lower subjective health status, especially in younger children and in those with chronic medication usage. Therefore, it is important to develop and use profile-screening tools to identify these children.
- Subjects
NETHERLANDS; CHRONICALLY ill children; PREVENTION of malnutition; QUALITY of life; NUTRITIONAL status; SCHOOL attendance; OUTPATIENT medical care; CHRONIC disease risk factors; CHRONIC diseases &; psychology; MENTAL health; HOSPITAL care of children; HEALTH status indicators; LONGITUDINAL method; NUTRITION disorders in children; SCHOOLS; HEALTH self-care; SPECIAL education; HOSPITAL care of teenagers; RELATIVE medical risk; SELF diagnosis
- Publication
Quality of Life Research, 2016, Vol 25, Issue 4, p969
- ISSN
0962-9343
- Publication type
journal article
- DOI
10.1007/s11136-015-1130-4