Original articleA Prospective School-based Study of Abdominal Pain and Other Common Somatic Complaints in Children
Section snippets
Methods
All third through eighth grade students attending 2 Chicago public schools with mixed ethnicity and socioeconomic populations were invited to participate in a prospective cohort study. The aims of the study were not revealed to the children or parents to minimize bias. General information about the study was provided by the principal investigator to the children, and informational letters and consents were sent to the parents. The study was approved by the institutional review board of
Results
A total of 237 of 495 children (48%) were enrolled in the study. The remaining children either declined to participate or failed to return signed consent forms. All participants completed the study. Differing school schedules necessitated staggered start times. The study began in December 2005 at 1 school and February 2006 at the other. However, once the study was begun, both schools adhered to the same protocol and schedule for its duration.
An average of 209 children (range, 184-233) responded
Discussion
This large, prospective, epidemiological study assessed common somatic symptoms in school-age American children. The prospective design, 100% subject retention, and large, complete dataset are several strengths of our investigation. Our study provides systematic data, including co-morbidity and cost impact.
Few studies have examined AP in community-based samples of children, with published studies suffering from design limitations, questionable external validity, or both.30 We collected data in
References (38)
- et al.
Insights in the use of health care services in chronic benign pain in childhood and adolescence
Pain
(2001) - et al.
Abdominal pain and irritable bowel syndrome in adolescents: a community-based study
J Pediatr
(1996) - et al.
Childhood functional gastrointestinal disorders: child/adolescent
Gastroenterology
(2006) - et al.
Psychosocial factors in the irritable bowel syndromeA multivariate study of patients and nonpatients with irritable bowel syndrome
Gastroenterology
(1988) - et al.
Recurrent abdominal pains: a field survey of 1000 school children
Arch Dis Child
(1958) - et al.
Clinical epidemiology of childhood abdominal migraine in an urban general practice
Dev Med Child Neurol
(1993) - et al.
[Recurrent abdominal pain in schoolchildren 9-12 years of age]
Ugeskr Laeger
(1990) - et al.
Gastrointestinal complaints and diagnosis in children: a population-based study
Acta Paediatr
(2004) - et al.
Chronic pain among children and adolescents: physician consultation and medication use
Clin J Pain
(2000) - et al.
A prospective community-based study of gastroenterological symptoms in school-age children
J Pediatr Gastroenterol Nutr
(2006)
Children with recurrent abdominal pain: how do they grow up?
Br Med J
Turancy intervention
J Res Develop Educat
Reexamination of input and process factor effects of public school achievement
J Educ Res
Evidence of student attendance as an independent variable in education production functions
J Educ Res
The long-term outcome of truancy
Protecting you/protecting me: effects of an alcohol prevention and vehicle safety program on elementary students
J Sch Health
A review of predictors of youth violence
Multiple risks and comorbidity in African American population
Crim Behav Ment Health
The child with abdominal pains
Cited by (260)
The Use of Pictograms in the Evaluation of Functional Abdominal Pain Disorders in Children
2023, Journal of PediatricsSkills or Pills: Randomized Trial Comparing Hypnotherapy to Medical Treatment in Children With Functional Nausea
2022, Clinical Gastroenterology and HepatologyThe Development of Somatic Symptom Disorder in Children: Psychological Characteristics and Psychiatric Comorbidity
2022, Journal of the Academy of Consultation-Liaison PsychiatryCitation Excerpt :In this study, our aim was to expand our understanding of the disorder by combining factors that had been identified as being related to SSD with etiological aspects and personality traits. In accordance with previous studies,4,8 the results of this study also identified two main clusters of somatic symptoms and described the differences between them. We found that gastrointestinal complaints were associated with familial accommodation, depression, and anxiety, while neurological complaints were not.
Italian guidelines for the management of irritable bowel syndrome in children and adolescents: Joint Consensus from the Italian Societies of: Gastroenterology, Hepatology and Pediatric Nutrition (SIGENP), Pediatrics (SIP), Gastroenterology and Endoscopy (SIGE) and Neurogastroenterology and Motility (SINGEM)
2024, Italian Journal of PediatricsChildren and Adolescents with Irritable Bowel Syndrome: Treatment and Management
2024, Current Pediatric ReviewsFunctional somatic symptoms in preschool attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder: a secondary analysis of data from a randomized controlled trial of parent training
2023, European Child and Adolescent Psychiatry
Funding for this study was provided by the American College of Gastroenterology's 2004 Clinical Research Award. The authors declare no potential conflicts of interest, real or perceived.