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Body Image Dissatisfaction among Pediatric Patients with Inflammatory Bowel Disease
Jennifer D Claytor1, Bharati Kochar2, Michael D Kappelman3
1Department of Internal Medicine, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA.
Insights
Female sex, older age, active disease, steroid use, and mood disorders are key risk factors for body image dissatisfaction in pediatric inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) patients. Addressing these can improve quality of life.
Area of Science:
- Pediatric gastroenterology
- Psychosomatic medicine
- Quality of life research
Background:
- Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) significantly impacts pediatric patients' physical and psychological well-being.
- Body image dissatisfaction is a common concern among adolescents, potentially exacerbated by chronic illness.
- Understanding risk factors is crucial for targeted interventions in pediatric IBD.
Purpose of the Study:
- To identify demographic, disease-related, and psychosocial risk factors for body image dissatisfaction in children and adolescents with IBD.
- To inform the development of supportive care strategies for this vulnerable population.
Main Methods:
- Cross-sectional study of 664 pediatric patients (aged 9-18) from the IBD Partners Kids & Teens cohort.
- Utilized surveys including demographics, disease characteristics, and the IMPACT-III questionnaire for psychosocial outcomes.
- Defined body image dissatisfaction based on specific self-reported statements regarding appearance.
Main Results:
- 11.1% of patients reported body image dissatisfaction.
- Risk factors included female sex, older age, older age at IBD diagnosis, higher BMI percentile, active disease, current steroid use, and comorbid depression/anxiety.
- Female sex, depression, and anxiety were independently associated with body image dissatisfaction.
Conclusions:
- Female sex, older age at diagnosis, active disease, steroid use, higher BMI, and comorbid mood disorders are significant risk factors for body image dissatisfaction in pediatric IBD.
- Interventions addressing these modifiable factors may enhance the quality of life for affected children and adolescents.
Objectives:
To determine risk factors for body image dissatisfaction among pediatric patients with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD).
Study Design:
We performed a cross-sectional study of children aged 9-18 years in the IBD Partners Kids & Teens cohort. Participants completed surveys including demographics, disease characteristics and activity indices, and psychosocial outcomes measured by IMPACT-III questionnaires. We defined body image dissatisfaction if participants answered "I look awful" or "I look bad." Bivariate analyses assessed associations between body image dissatisfaction and demographic, disease-related and psychosocial factors; logistic regression models evaluated associations between risk factors and body image dissatisfaction.
Results:
IMPACT-III was completed by 664 patients, with 74 (11.1%) reporting body image dissatisfaction. Patients with body image dissatisfaction were more likely to be female (P < .01), older (median age 15 vs 13 years, P < .01), and diagnosed with IBD at an older age (12 vs 10 years, P < .01). Those with body image dissatisfaction had greater body mass index percentile (P = .02), more active disease (P < .01), more current steroid use (P < .01), and more depression and anxiety (P < .01). Female sex (OR 2.31; 95% CI 1.22-4.39), depression (OR 4.73; 95% CI 2.41-9.26), and anxiety (OR 5.42; 95% CI 2.48-11.80) were independently associated with body image dissatisfaction.
Conclusions:
In this cohort, risk factors for body image dissatisfaction include female sex, older age at diagnosis, active disease, current steroid use, greater body mass index, and comorbid mood disorder. Interventions targeting modifiable risk factors for body image dissatisfaction may improve quality of life in pediatric patients with body image dissatisfaction.
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