Évaluation de la qualité de vie des parents d’enfants atteints de paralysie cérébrale

Introduction

The quality of life of parents with a cerebral palsy child comprehensively encompasses their physical, psychological, and environmental health. The objective of this work was to determine the psychological and socio-professional repercussions of this pathology on the parents of children with cerebral palsy.

Patients and methods

Our study took place in the Neurology and Paediatrics departments of the Ignace Deen National Hospital. The study is prospective of a descriptive type with an analytical aim, lasting six (6) months, from April 1 to September 30, 2020. Our study variables were quantitative and qualitative. Pearson's correlation test was used to identify factors associated with the dimensions of the PAR-QOL and the results were considered significant if (P < 0.05).

Results

We collected 27 children with cerebral palsy with 35 parents, 77.1 % of whom were mothers and 22.9 % were fathers. The proportion of unemployed parents was 37.4 %. The average age of children with cerebral palsy was 19.4 ± 13.4 months, with an M/F sex ratio of 2. Descriptive analysis of the parents’ responses to the 17 items of the PAR-QOL shows that mothers estimate a severe impact of cerebral palsy on their emotional, daily (adaptive) and general quality of life with a response score of 3.7. Our study did not find a significant association between working time and parental education level and the dimensions of PAR-QOL.

Conclusion

The present study reveals that parents of children with cerebral palsy experience a difficult and negative emotionally and adaptively, and those more pronounced among mothers.