Development and Psychometric Testing of a Pediatric Chronic Graft- Versus-Host Disease (GVHD) Symptom Scale (PCSS)

Summary

Background: Some children/adolescents who have had a stem cell transplant live with chronic graft-versus-host-disease (cGVHD). cGVHD is a side effect of the transplant that can cause multiple bothersome symptoms and negatively affect a child/adolescent squality of daily life. The questionnaires that measure thesymptoms caused by cGVHD are designed for adults. Children/adolescents may not describe their symptoms in the same way. The goal of this research is to improve the way we measure how bothersome these symptoms are for children/adolescents living with cGVHD. Objective: To develop a questionnaire (The Pediatric cGHVD Symptom Scale) for children/adolescents living with cGVHD to identify the symptoms they are experiencing and describe how bothersome those symptoms are to them. An additional goal is to design a parent/guardian companion questionnaire that can be used to capture the symptom experiences of very young children who may not be able to complete a questionnaire. Eligibility: Children/adolescents ages 5-17 who are receiving treatment for cGVHD after a stem cell transplant, and their parent/guardian.. Design: This study consists of 2 projects. Children/adolescents with cGVHD and their parent/guardianparticipants will be grouped by the child/adolescent s age: 5-7, 8-12, and 13-17. In project 1, participants will complete an age-appropriate questionnaire about cGVHD symptoms. The questionnaire will ask about the child/adolescent s physical functioning and emotional well-being. The parent/guardian will out fill out a companion questionnaire online. The child/adolescent will then review their completed questionnaire during an interview with a researcher and will be asked whether the questions about their symptoms were difficult to understand. The parent/guardian and child/adolescent will then be interviewed together to further explore their responses to the questionnaires. Interviews will be done in person, by phone, and online. . Based on what is learned through these interviews, the wording of the questionnaire will be improved for better comprehension and ease of response. In project 2, participants will complete this revised questionnairefor their age group along with some other questionnaires that ask about quality of life. Both the child/adolescent and parent/guardian will fill out the questionnaires online at three separate time points. In both projects, children/adolescents with cGVHD and their parent/guardian participants will be grouped by the child/adolescent s age: 5-7, 8-12, and 13-17. ...

Description

Eligibility

Age range

5–99 years

Sex

All

Healthy volunteers

Yes

Locations (17)