Assessing the quality of life of children with mental disorders using a computer-based self-reported generic instrument (KidIQoL)—Quality of life of children with mental disorders

Melanie White-Koning, Martine Gayral-Taminh, Valérie Lauwers-Cancès, Hélène Grandjean, Jean-Philippe Raynaud

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DOI: 10.4236/ojpsych.2011.11002                

Abstract

OBJECTIVE: To assess the self-reported quality of life (Qol) of children with various mental disorders and compare the scores in this population with those in children without such problems. METHODS: Self- reported Qol was assessed using KidiQoL, a generic computer-based tool with 44 items exploring four domains (Physical and psychological health, Family life, School life and Social and physical environment). The study group consisted of 139 children (111 boys and 28 girls) aged between 6 and 12 years (mean age 9.1 years) referred to an outpatient mental health unit for mental disorders, 29 of whom completed the questionnaire about 2 weeks later in order to assess test-retest reliability. The comparison group consisted of 130 children from the general population, aged 6 to 12 years (mean age 9.0 years) and attending main- stream schools in the same geographical area. RE- SULTS: The test-retest reliability of the instrument was very good with an intraclass correlation coefficient of 0.97 for the total score and above 0.90 in all domains. No significant differences in domain and total scores were observed according to gender or developmental age. Children with developmental disorders or schizophrenia reported significantly lower QoL in the Health domain than children with other types of mental disorders. In all domains and for the total score, the children with mental disorders re- ported significantly lower QoL than the children from the general population; CONCLUSION: KidIQoL has been found suitable and psychometrically valid in children with mental disorders. Its use could help the assessment and adaptation of psychiatric care.

Keywords

Quality of Life; Mental Disorder; Children

Conflicts of Interest

The authors declare no conflicts of interest.

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