Parental perception of health-related quality of life of children [8-12 years] living with hiv

Objective – This study aims were to evaluate the parental perception of health-related quality of life (HRQoL) of children living with Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) using the Pediatric quality of life questionnaire (PedsQL™), compare children’s report with the parental proxy report, and examine the association of child-report with other socio-demographic and clinical characteristics. Methods – A cross-sectional study involved 39 children living with HIV on antiretroviral therapy (ART) and their parents who were recruited at the Nigerian Institute of Medical Research, Lagos. A validated PedsQL™ questionnaire with 23 items designed to measure four generic dimensions of health was used to collect data. The parental proxy report forms were filled by the parents/caregiver. The information obtained from the PedsQL™ questionnaire were analyzed using the scoring protocol of PedsQL™ version 4.0. Results – The mean age of the children was 10.6±3 years, with a male-to-female ratio of 1.2:1. The mean physical and overall HRQoL scores were significantly better in the child’s self-report compared to parental proxy reports. There was significant association between the child self-report of HRQoL and parental proxy report (odds ratio [OR]=20, 95%Confidence Interval [CI] 2.184-193.7), duration of ARTs (OR=11.455, 95%CI=1.22-107.51) and male gender (OR=0.156, 95%CI=0.038-0.38). Conclusion – Parental scores, male gender, and duration of ART were associated with better HRQoL outcomes in children living with HIV.