According to recent research published in the journal Frontiers in Pediatrics from UVA Health Children’s Research, children who frequently miss school due to abdominal complaints are more likely to be suffering from GI disorders of the gut-brain-axis like irritable bowel syndromes (IBS).
This study looked at school absenteeism as reported by parents bringing their children to receive medical attention. According to UVA’s Stephen M. Borowitz, MD, and fourth-year medical student Seth M. Tersteeg, children who missed more than three days of school in the prior month were close to five times more likely to be suffering from functional gastrointestinal (GI) disorders ranging from IBS to heightened digestive sensitivity than to be suffering from an illness with a specific underlying cause that could be pinpointed with lab testing.
Additionally, children with high absenteeism due to being homebound with abdominal complaints for the entire month were found to be close to eight times more likely to be suffering from functional GI disorders.
“We suspect that one of the biggest reasons children with functional gastrointestinal disorders are more likely to miss lots of school is because of what is often a long delay in making a definitive diagnosis,” said Borowitz, a pediatric gastroenterologist with UVA Health Children’s Department of Pediatrics. “The longer the child goes without an explanation of why they are having symptoms and what can be done to lessen those symptoms, the more anxious, fearful and frustrated the child and the family become. In general, the quicker we can identify what is going on and begin treatment, the better the outcome.”
Chronic GI Disorders In Children
Stomach and digestive problems are common in growing school-aged children. It could be from a short-term tummy virus, or even eating too much, but in the majority of persistent cases the cause is something else. In such cases, abdominal pain and constipation account for up to 38% of pediatrician appointments, and 95% of those cases are not the result of a gastrointestinal disease, rather they are due to functional GI disorders.
Although the somewhat ambiguous diagnosis of functional GI disorders can be worrisome for both child and parent alike, delays in getting children examined for a specific diagnosis can reduce the effectiveness of the treatment for their condition and contribute to more school absenteeism.
School Absenteeism
“Over the years, it seemed like the majority of children we were seeing in our practice with chronic gastrointestinal complaints and were missing lots of school were suffering from functional gastrointestinal disorders — disorders of the gut-brain axis — rather than gastrointestinal diseases,” Tersteeg said. “So we performed this study to see if this impression was correct.”
The analysis of parents taking children with chronic GI complaints to receive medical attention included 674 visits from school-aged children. Of these, 82% had missed more than three days of school the prior month, and they went on to receive a diagnosis of a functional GI disorder. Of the 408 children found to have functional GI disorders, the most common being 36% with constipation, 35% with abdominal pain, and 31% with irritable bowel. Additionally, over 220 children were found to have more than one disorder, however, their absenteeism rates were no higher than those with only one disorder.
The researchers believe that doctors should ask about school absenteeism to help identify children more quickly who may be suffering from functional GI disorders, which would speed up diagnosis and treatment to improve the child’s quality of life and outcome.
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