Development and validation of psychological status questionnaire for parents of infantile hemangiomas

Abstract

Background: Infantile hemangioma (IH) is the most frequent benign tumor of infancy which impacts the psychological status of parents of affected children. Parental psychological status has a significant effect on the therapeutic effect and long-term prognosis of IH children. However, no standard questionnaires had been established previously to assess the psychological status of Chinese parents of children with IH.Methods: This study prospectively developed and validated a psychological status instrument for the assessment of parents of patients with IH and to identify clinical features with effects on the psychological status. A total of 350 parents completed the 35-item Psychologic Status Questionnaire for parents of Infantile Hemangiomas (IH-PSQ) and provided demographic information. The IH-PSQ was refined via item analysis, validity analysis (including exploratory factor analysis and criterion-related validity) and reliability analysis (including internal consistency reliability, split half reliability, and test-retest reliability).Results: The dimensionality of the items was evaluated using factor analysis, with results suggesting 5 factors: anxiety, depression, psychological imbalance, disease shame, and disease fear. The final instrument consists of 4 scales with a total of 23 items. Construct validity was demonstrated and IH-PSQ showed good internal coherence (Cronbach's α: 0.957), good split half reliability (0.971), and good test-retest reliability (correlation coefficient: 0.967). The correlation coefficient between the Self-Rating Anxiety Scale (SAS) and Self-rating Depression Scale (SDS) of children with IH was 0.874 and 0.754, respectively. Multiple linear regression analysis found that some characteristics will affect the score of IH-PSQ. Conclusions:The IH-PSQ contains 5 dimensions and 23 entries, and with good reliability and validity, can objectively and effectively evaluate the psychological status of IH parents. Certain clinical characteristics of IH families, including parents' own factors (including their monthly income and cultural level) and disease-related factors of affected children (including the duration of illness, tumor size, with or without complications, single or multiple, whether being treated or not), were associated with a greater impact on IH-PSQ.

The efficacy of extracted Tanshinone compounds for infantile hemangiomas of the skin: results from a pilot study

“…Parents expressed high satisfaction with the treatment, particularly with its long-term effects. Hemangiomas affecting cosmetic areas can induce negative emotions, such as anxiety and low self-esteem in parents and children, thereby accentuating the importance of psychological factors in the treatment of IHs ( 19 ). Timely topical drug use can prevent overtreatment driven by anxiety.…”

Identification of Diagnostic Markers in Infantile Hemangiomas

“…Where most of them multiply within 6 to 10 months, reaching the maximum size by 3 to 5 months old, and slowly regress before 4 years old in 90% of cases [ 2 ], while the remaining 10% of IHs may require intervention resulting from location, size, and complications, involving obstruction, dysfunction, ulcers, hypothyroidism, disfigurement, and other syndromes with life-threatening [ 3 ]. Head and neck ulcers are the most common severe anatomical deformations which heavily burden the child and their families [ 4 , 5 ].…”