Investigation of the Behavioral Problems and Life Quality of the Children with Chronic Diseases

Objective: The number of children with chronic diseases occurring in the childhood period increases each day. There are only a limited number of studies in Turkey addressing the emotional and behavioral problems and quality of life of children with chronic diseases. Therefore, this research aims to study the behaviors and quality of life of children with chronic diseases and provide recommendations. Material and Methods: The study was conducted on children who were diagnosed with diabetes, epilepsy, and chronic renal failure and followed-up and treated at the Endocrinology, Neurology, and Nephrology clinics of the Ankara Pediatric Haematology, and Oncology Training and Research Hospital located in Ankara city centre, and on their mothers. The “General Information Form”, “Behavioral Assessment Scale for Children and Youth” and “Quality of life Scale for Children” were used as tools of data collection for the study. Results:Ninety-three children with chronic diseases and their mothers were enrolled in the study. The percentages of girls and boys enrolled in the study were 53.8% and 46.2% respectively, where mean ages of girls and boys were 12.8±0.8 and 12.9±0.8 respectively. As regards the types of diseases of the participants, diabetes (46.2%) was followed by epilepsy (30.1%), and chronic renal failure (23.7%). It was found that the family type and the medical condition had a significant effect on both behavior and quality of life, whereas continuous use of medication and number of hospitalizations only had a significant effect on quality of life. The age group did not have a significant effect on the behavior or quality of life. Conclusion: As a result of the research, it was determined that children with chronic diseases had a high rate of behavioral problems and a low quality of life. Furthermore, it was found that there was a negative significant relationship between the behavioral problems of children and their quality of life