Forty-eight patients from 2 children's hospitals underwent scoring of stooling after 4 years of life. Scoring consisted of a 13-item questionnaire to assess long-term stooling habits (score range: 0-30, worst to best). These results were then correlated with a QOL survey as judged by a parent or guardian.
Mean (SD) age at survey was 6.5 (1.6) years. Comparison of QOL and clinical scoring showed no signficant difference between the 2 institutions (P > .05). There was a direct correlation between the QOL and stooling score (Pearson r2 = 0.827; β coefficient = 24.7, P < .001). Interestingly, functional stooling scores worsened with increasing age (Pearson r2 = 0.318, P = .02). Patients with associated congenital anomalies had a high rate of poor QOL (44 % in poor range; P = .001). Stooling scores decreased significantly with increasing severity/complexity of the ARM (P = .001).
A large number of children experience functional stooling problems, and these were directly associated with poor QOL. In contrast to previous perceptions, our study showed that stooling patterns are perceived to worsen with age. This suggests that children with ARMs need long-term follow-up and counseling.