Association between voiding dysfunction symptoms and health-related quality of life in primary school children: a...

Voiding dysfunction is a common pediatric problem and accounts for roughly one-fifth of visits to pediatric urology clinics. We examined whether voiding dysfunction symptoms were related to health-related quality of life in primary school children. We conducted a cross-sectional correlational study with 498 children aged 8-12 years and their parents from three primary schools in İzmir. Parents completed the Voiding Dysfunction Symptom Score (VDSS), whereas the children completed the Kid-KINDL Health-Related Quality of Life Questionnaire. Sixty children (12%) screened positive on the VDSS. Urgency was the most frequently reported symptom (34.9%), followed by voiding more than seven times per day (18.7%) and daytime incontinence (15.3%). Total VDSS and Kid-KINDL scores showed a weak inverse correlation (r = -0.112, p = 0.012; r² = 0.013, indicating a small effect size). Before covariate adjustment, children who screened positive on the VDSS had lower total quality-of-life scores than those who screened negative on the VDSS (74.3 ± 12.1; 77.9 ± 12.3). The largest unadjusted difference was in the Family Relationships subdimension (p < 0.05). Neither this difference nor the total-score difference remained significant after Bonferroni correction or adjustment for demographic covariates.

The unadjusted findings suggested lower health-related quality of life among children who screened positive on the VDSS, with the clearest difference in Family Relationships. These associations were no longer significant after demographic adjustment.

• Among school-aged children, voiding dysfunction is relatively common and has been linked to poorer psychosocial functioning and lower quality of life.

• VDSS-positive screening was associated with lower unadjusted quality-of-life scores, especially in Family Relationships, but this association did not persist after covariate adjustment.