Educational and occupational outcomes among young adults with juvenile idiopathic arthritis

Abstract

Objective. To examine educational and occupational outcomes among young adults with juvenile idiopathic arthritis (JIA) and peers during the transition from adolescence to emerging adulthood. Methods. Families were recruited when children with JIA were 8 -14 years old. At that time, each child with JIA was matched to a classmate of similar age, sex, and race for inclusion in a comparison group. For the current followup (12.64 years postdiagnosis), 45 participants with JIA, 46 peers, and their parents completed questionnaires soon after the young person's 18th birthday. Disease type and severity were rated by health care providers. Results. Young adults with JIA and peers were similar on a variety of factors, including family background, scholastic and occupational self-concept, and academic competence. The proportion of participants who graduated from high school, were working, and expressed plans to attend postsecondary education or seek employment was similar between groups. Disease type, initial severity, and time since diagnosis were generally not associated with indices of educational and occupational attainment. Conclusion. Despite the challenge of having a chronic illness, young adults with JIA were similar to peers on numerous educational and occupational outcomes during the transition from adolescence to emerging adulthood. Interventions to assist academic or occupational functioning may not be necessary for all children with JIA, but additional research is needed to identify subgroups at risk for long-term difficulties.

Perceived Attainment of Developmental Tasks in Adolescents with and without Physical Disabilities

“…The observed higher levels of perceived achievement of academic competence and the better grades of students with PD as compared to their able-bodied peers differ from previous studies showing no differences between groups (e.g., Erkolahti and Ilonen, 2005;Gerhardt et al 2008) or lower academic competence in students with PD (Shields et al 2006(Shields et al , 2008. Based on our inclusion criteria, the present sample may have been a positive selection of students with PD with average and above-average cognitive resources that enable them to do well at school.…”

“…Regarding the acquisition of academic competencies, school grades of students with PD did not differ, on average, from those of their peers without PD in some studies (e.g., Erkolahti and Ilonen 2005;Gerhardt et al 2008). In contrast, meta-analyses found lower levels of scholastic competence and academic functioning in adolescents with cerebral palsy (Shields et al 2006;Pinquart and Teubert 2012), and spina bifida (Shields et al 2008;Pinquart and Teubert 2012) than in healthy peers.…”

The impact of arthritis on the early employment experiences of young adults: A literature review

“…Results showed that participants with JIA were less likely than their healthy peers to report that their current jobs were related to their future goals. 27 When examining barriers to employment, a majority of studies (8 out of 9) showed that greater disease severity JRA group less likely to work in industries which require physical activity than siblings 88.5% attributed their unemployment to their health greater activity limitations significantly related to unemployment (e.g. disease activity, joint count, arthritis subtype) and activity limitations were associated with not being employed.…”

“…Several studies also compared employment status to age-matched controls 20,24,27,28,32 or age-matched population-level data. 26,29 In all cases, young adults were less likely to be employed when compared to their healthy peers.…”

“…28 Findings showed that high Work Instability Scores were related to greater activity limitations and lower educational outcomes. 28 Gerhardt et al (2008), examined career aspirations in a study of young people with juvenile idiopathic arthritis (JIA). Results showed that participants with JIA were less likely than their healthy peers to report that their current jobs were related to their future goals.…”