Coping styles in hypospadias patients

Summary Objective To investigate the coping styles used by hypospadias patients. Long-term hypospadias studies generally show satisfying outcomes, but some report a lower quality of life (QoL) or poorer psychosocial adjustment, particularly in patients with proximal hypospadias. A lower quality of life or psychosocial adjustment was found to be associated with poorer coping styles in other pediatric patient populations. Hypothetically, hypospadias patients also develop different coping styles due to medical experiences in childhood, leading to the lower QoL outcomes on the long term. However, coping styles of hypospadias patients have never been analysed. Patients & Methods Adult men with hypospadias repair in childhood were recruited (n=55; aged 19.9 [IQR 19.2-22.1]). Coping styles were determined with the Utrecht Coping List (UCL) and results compared with a reference group of male students (n=55, age 20-30 years, no medical history). Sub analysis of coping styles of the hypospadias groups was done based on three items: severity of hypospadias, time of last hypospadias surgery and occurrence of postoperative complications. Results Compared to the reference groups, hypospadias patients had higher scores on Avoidance (p Conclusion Hypospadias patients, particularly those with proximal hypospadias or a postoperative complication, more often use an avoiding coping style compared to a reference population. Attention to coping styles during the follow-up of hypospadias patients might help to improve the quality of life in these patients.