Objective: It is important to know the health-related quality of life (HRQoL) in children with type 1 diabetes mellitus (T1DM) and their caregivers for identifying at-risk children and applying early intervention programs. The present study aimed to investigate HRQoL of children aged 8-12 with T1DM and their mothers.
Methods: Forty-seven children with T1DM (26 female, 21 male) and their mothers, and 55 healthy children (27 female, 28 male) and their mothers were enrolled in this prospective, cross-sectional and controlled study. The sociodemographic data were evaluated. The child self-report and parent proxy report of Pediatric Quality of Life Inventory 4.0 Scales (PedsQL 4.0) were used to assess the children’s healthrelated quality of life (HRQoL); and the World Health Organization Quality of Life Instrument; short form (WHOQOL-BREF) was used for the mothers’ HRQoL. Independent sample t-tests for normal distribution of data were used to determine differences of subjects’ demographic and clinical features. P values0.05). According to child self-reports, the T1DM group had a significantly lower total scale score (TSS), physical health summary score (PHSS), and psychosocial health summary score (PsHSS) than the healthy group (p0.05). The WHOQOL-BREF scores for the mothers of the children with T1DM were statistically lower for physical health, psychosocial health and environmental area compared to mothers of healthy group (p0.05).
Conclusion: Type 1 diabetes mellitus affects the HRQoL both of the children carrying the disease and their mothers. More support should be provided for the care of children with T1DM and their mothers. The reasons for the absence of a difference in parent proxy reports of HRQoL should be investigated in future studies.