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Review about the impact of growing up with a chronic disease showed delays achieving psychosocial milestones
Author(s) -
MauriceStam Heleen,
Nijhof Sanne L.,
Monninkhof Anneke S.,
Heymans Hugo S. A.,
Grootenhuis Martha A.
Publication year - 2019
Publication title -
acta paediatrica
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.772
H-Index - 115
eISSN - 1651-2227
pISSN - 0803-5253
DOI - 10.1111/apa.14918
Subject(s) - psychosocial , psychosexual development , medicine , developmental milestone , erikson's stages of psychosocial development , autonomy , disease , population , gerontology , pediatrics , developmental psychology , psychiatry , psychology , pathology , environmental health , political science , law
Abstract Aim This review aimed to provide a comprehensive overview of the psychosocial developmental trajectory of various diseases during childhood and adolescence. Methods Studies of Dutch young adults aged 18‐35 years, who had grown up with a chronic disease, were included if the Course of Life Questionnaire had been used to assess psychosocial developmental milestones in three domains: social, autonomy and psychosexual. Differences between the disease groups and the general population were presented as Cohen's d and odds ratios. Results We included 17 studies comprising 1899 young adults, who had grown up with 18 different paediatric diseases. Psychosocial development was delayed in all three questionnaire domains. Remarkable findings with regard to specific milestones were as follows: less participation in sports clubs in the social domain, less likely to have had paid jobs in the autonomy domain and later sexual intimacy in the psychosexual domain. End‐stage renal disease, galactosaemia (males), childhood cancer and orthotopic liver transplants were the most affected disease groups. Conclusion Children and adolescents with chronic diseases risked delays in psychosocial development. This should be addressed by healthcare providers, along with the physical aspects of diseases, and they should focus on the optimal psychosocial development of the patient.