1. Parenting a child with phenylketonuria or galactosemia: implications for health-related quality of life
- Author
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Amber E. ten Hoedt, Francjan J. van Spronsen, M. Estela Rubio-Gozalbo, Frits A. Wijburg, Heleen Maurice-Stam, Martha A. Grootenhuis, Carolien C. A. Boelen, Annet M. Bosch, Center for Liver, Digestive and Metabolic Diseases (CLDM), Paediatric Metabolic Diseases, CCA -Cancer Center Amsterdam, APH - Amsterdam Public Health, Child and Adolescent Psychiatry & Psychosocial Care, AGEM - Amsterdam Gastroenterology Endocrinology Metabolism, Kindergeneeskunde, RS: GROW - School for Oncology and Reproduction, and Faculteit der Geneeskunde
- Subjects
Adult ,Galactosemias ,Male ,Parents ,medicine.medical_specialty ,congenital, hereditary, and neonatal diseases and abnormalities ,Adolescent ,Phenylketonurias ,media_common.quotation_subject ,Disease ,ADJUSTMENT ,Social class ,Quality of life ,Surveys and Questionnaires ,Adaptation, Psychological ,Genetics ,medicine ,Humans ,Genetics(clinical) ,Child ,Psychiatry ,Genetics (clinical) ,media_common ,CONSEQUENCES ,business.industry ,Galactosemia ,Infant ,nutritional and metabolic diseases ,ADULTS ,medicine.disease ,humanities ,Friendship ,Social Class ,Child, Preschool ,DISEASES ,Quality of Life ,Life expectancy ,Female ,CLASSICAL GALACTOSEMIA ,business ,Psychosocial - Abstract
Parents of children with chronic disorders have an impaired health-related quality of life (HRQoL) compared to parents of healthy children. Remarkably, parents of children with a metabolic disorder reported an even lower HRQoL than parents of children with other chronic disorders. Possibly, the uncertainty about the course of the disease and the limited life expectancy in many metabolic disorders are important factors in the low parental HRQoL. Therefore, we performed a cross-sectional study in parents of children with phenylketonuria (PKU, OMIM #261600) and galactosemia (OMIM #230400), metabolic disorders not affecting life expectancy, in order to investigate their HRQoL compared to parents of healthy children and to parents of children with other metabolic disorders. A total of 185 parents of children with PKU and galactosemia aged 1-19 years completed two questionnaires. Parents of children with PKU or galactosemia reported a HRQoL comparable to parents of healthy children and a significantly better HRQoL than parents of children with other metabolic disorders. Important predictors for parental mental HRQoL were the psychosocial factors emotional support and loss of friendship. As parental mental functioning influences the health, development and adjustment of their children, it is important that treating physicians also pay attention to the wellbeing of the parents. The insight that emotional support and loss of friendship influence the HRQoL of the parents enables treating physicians to provide better support for these parents.
- Published
- 2011
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