Psychological comorbidity in children and adolescents with chronic somatic diseases

This article analyzes emotional and behavioral problems in children and adolescents with chronic somatic disorders. Within the German Health Interview and Examination Survey for Children and Adolescents (Kinder- und Jugendgesundheitssurvey, KIGGS), chronic somatic conditions and obesity were assessed in 11,529 children and adolescents aged 7-17 years old. Special health care needs (CSHCN), emotional and behavioral problems (SDQ), as well as personal, familial, and social resources were surveyed. About 10.8% of the respondents displayed special health care needs and declared a chronic somatic disorder. Of these cases, 20.6% were classified as abnormal in the SDQ (non-somatic conditions: 6.4%). In a logistic regression analysis, male gender (OR=2.0), low socioeconomic status (Winkler index; OR=2.6), family structure (OR>1), and deficits in familial (OR=2.4) and personal (OR=2.1) resources were found to be significantly associated with psychological comorbidity in chronic somatic conditions. The results confirmed previous findings. Especially socioeconomic, structural, and functional aspects of a family have to be considered in the development and prevention of psychological comorbidity in chronic somatic conditions in childhood and adolescence.