Can We Estimate Quality of Life in Pediatric Inflammatory Bowel Disease Patients? An Asian Multicenter Study

Abstract

OBJECTIVES: Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) is a chronic lifelong condition and is related to poor quality of life (QoL). The aim of this study was to evaluate the QoL of Asian pediatric patients with IBD and to determine the clinical factors that can influence QoL.

METHODS: Children and adolescents aged 9 to 18 years diagnosed with IBD were enrolled from 7 hospitals. The patients completed the IMPACT-III questionnaire, and clinical data were collected. The results of the questionnaire and the correlation with clinical data were analyzed.

RESULTS: A total of 208 patients (Crohn disease: n = 166; ulcerative colitis: n = 42) were enrolled. There was no definite QoL difference according to the Paris classification. Female sex (-5.92 ± 2.97, P = 0.0347) and active disease status (-10.79 ± 3.11, P = 0.0006) were significantly associated with poor QoL. Extreme body weight z score and older age at diagnosis were also associated with worse QoL.

CONCLUSIONS: Various clinical factors may affect the QoL in patients with IBD, but determining the overall QoL of patients using only these clinical factors is difficult. Therefore, regular direct measurements of QoL are necessary to better understand patients with IBD.