Quality of Life in Pediatric Patients with Cystic Fibrosis

In order to assess quality of life, we administered the Child Health Questionnaire (CHQ) to 43 pediatric patients diagnosed with cystic fibrosis (CF). Statistical analyses demonstrated that girls with CF perceive themselves to have better general health and report greater optimism regarding their future health than do boys with CF. Findings also revealed that age negatively correlated with general health perception, such that patients report worse general health as they become older. In addition, we administered the parent version of the CHQ to one of each patient's parents for the purpose of comparing their perceptions to those of their children. Results indicated that in each of the domains assessed parents perceive their children to experience greater impairment than that reported by patients. Finally, comparisons of parents' perceptions of the quality of life (QOL) of their children with CF versus parents' perceptions of the QOL of their children who have other chronic illness revealed variable patterns of impairment.