ABSTRACT

Our results suggest that psychiatric evalution is important in the treatment of children and adolescents and their parents with rheumatic heart disease.

We found higher anxiety scores and increased anxiety disorder diagnosis among children and adolescents with rheumatic heart disease (p<0.05). Mothers’ anxiety scores, depression scores, and personality traits are associated with KINDL subscales, and neuroticism scores are also associated with Child Depression Inventory scores. In addition, presence of psychiatric disorder was predicted by Beck anxiety scores.

A total of 25 children and adolescents with rheumatic heart disease, additionally, 25 children and adolescents with typical developing controls aged 6–16 years old were included. Kiddie-Schedule for Affective Disorders and Schizophrenia, (present and life time version – K-SADS-PL) was applied to parents of all of the children and adolescents, and Child Depression Inventory, The Spielberger State-Trait Anxiety Inventory for children KINDL^R Questionnaire for Measuring Health-Related Quality of Life in Children and Adolescents were applied to all of the children and adolescents. Assessment for mothers, Beck Depression Inventory, Beck Anxiety Inventory and Five Factor Personality Inventory were used.

We aimed to evaluate the psychiatric symptoms in addition to quality of life in children and adolescents with rheumatic heart disease, and to determine which factors contribute to psychiatric problems of them.