Health-related Quality of Life After Childhood Bacterial Meningitis

Area of Science:

• Pediatrics
• Infectious Diseases
• Public Health

Background:

• Bacterial meningitis (BM) survivors often face long-term challenges impacting their quality of life due to disabling sequelae.
• Estimating health-related quality of life (HRQOL) and the impact of neurologic and audiologic sequelae in pediatric BM survivors is critical for understanding long-term outcomes.

Purpose of the Study:

• To assess the health-related quality of life (HRQOL) in pediatric survivors of bacterial meningitis (BM).
• To determine the influence of neurologic and audiologic sequelae on the HRQOL of pediatric BM survivors.

Main Methods:

• A cohort of 68 pediatric bacterial meningitis survivors and 35 controls (vaccinated children and siblings) were evaluated.
• The modified Glasgow Outcome Scale assessed disability severity, while the Pediatric Quality of Life Inventory (PedsQL) measured HRQOL.
• Parent-proxy and child self-reporting via PedsQL were used to identify HRQOL disparities.

Main Results:

• BM survivors reported significantly lower HRQOL than controls across physical health, psychosocial health, and total scores, based on parent-proxy reports (P < 0.005).
• No significant difference in HRQOL was found between survivors and controls using child self-reporting.
• Parent-reported HRQOL scores for survivors were significantly lower across all disability levels (mild, moderate, severe) compared to controls (P < 0.04).

Conclusions:

• Parental perceptions indicate that bacterial meningitis survivors have impaired health-related quality of life, regardless of disability status.
• There is a clear need for ongoing follow-up and timely rehabilitation services for all bacterial meningitis survivors to mitigate long-term effects.