An Evaluation on the Quality of Life in Children with Immune Thrombocytopenia

Abstract

Objective: Children with immune thrombocytopenia (ITP) should take protective measures daily because of the nature of the disease and the medications. They should stay away from exhausting physical activities and dangerous sports. These restrictions affect, to a certain extent, the physical, psychosocial, and educational lives of childrens with ITP. We aimed to evaluate the quality of life of children with ITP using the Kinder Lebensqualität Fragebogen (KINDL) questionnaire. Methods: According to their age group, we gave the patients who were 4-6 years old Kiddy-KINDL, the patients who were 7-13 years old Kiddo-KINDL, and the patients who were 14-17 years old Kiddo-KINDL. For the parents of the patients, we employed scales corresponding to the age groups of the children and compared the results by age group. Results: This study was conducted with a total of 30 patients. The quality of life scores of parents were lower than those of children (p=0.007). Patients who received the diagnosis after the age of six had lower quality of life scores (p=0.025). Parental evaluations have found that the child's quality of life scores are lower, in acute/persistent periods of the disease, compared to the chronic period (p=0.043). Conclusion: The findings of our study indicate that it is important to enhance the quality of life for individuals diagnosed after the age of six at the beginning of school time, as well as those in the acute stage of the condition. Furthermore, the lower parent KINDL scores indicate that parents need to be more informed and supported about ITP.

Keywords

• childhood
• immune thrombocytopenia
• quality of life