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Impact of Children’s Feeding/Swallowing Problems: Validation of a New Caregiver Instrument

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Abstract

The impact of caring for children with deglutition disorders is poorly understood and tools to measure the unique concerns of these caregivers are lacking. The aims of this investigation were to develop and validate The Feeding/Swallowing Impact Survey (FS-IS) as an instrument designed to measure and improve understanding of caregiver issues. Demographic, economic, and dysphagic data were provided by the primary caregivers of 164 children (median age: 14 months, male: 78, female: 86) presenting for initial outpatient feeding/swallowing evaluations. Caregivers completed the PEDS-QL™ Family Impact Module (PEDS-QL™ FIM) and the FS-IS. A principal component analysis was conducted on the FS-IS to identify appropriate subscales. Concurrent validity was assessed by examining correlations between the FS-IS and PEDS-QL™ FIM. Caring for children with feeding/swallowing problems adversely impacted the Health-Related Quality of Life (HRQoL) of their caregivers. The FS-IS had a strong 3-factor solution to indicate 3 subscales: Daily Activities, Worry, and Feeding Difficulties. All three subscales and total score of the FS-IS correlated with PEDS-QL™ FIM. The FS-IS was validated as an instrument that may help clinicians detect specific factors that influence caregiver HRQoL, identify caregivers who might benefit from additional support, and ultimately improve the care of their children with feeding/swallowing disorders.

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Acknowledgements

The authors wish to thank the families who participated in the Johns Hopkins Pediatric Pulmonary Registry and the research assistants, Jillian Andrews and Lyndsey Marshall, who interacted with the families and compiled their data. This work was partially supported by the National Institutes of Health grants NHLBI HL089410 and NIDCD 5R01DC011290-03. The content is solely the responsibility of the authors and does not necessarily represent the official views of the National Institutes of Health.

Conflict of interest

All authors disclose that they have no financial interests in the subject of this manuscript.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Pediatrics, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, David M. Rubenstein Building, Suite 3017, 200 North Wolfe Street, Baltimore, MD, 21287, USA

    Maureen A. Lefton-Greif, Jennifer M. Wright, Joseph M. Collaco & Sharon A. McGrath-Morrow

  2. Department of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, 21287, USA

    Maureen A. Lefton-Greif

  3. Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, 21287, USA

    Maureen A. Lefton-Greif

  4. Department of Pediatrics, Mattel Children’s Hospital UCLA, The David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA, 10833 Le Conte Ave., 22-387B MDCC, Los Angeles, CA, 90095, USA

    Sande O. Okelo

  5. Division of Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine, Johns Hopkins Adherence Research Center, 5501 Hopkins Bayview Circle Room 3B.35, Baltimore, MD, 21224, USA

    Michelle N. Eakin

Authors
  1. Maureen A. Lefton-Greif
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  2. Sande O. Okelo
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  3. Jennifer M. Wright
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Correspondence to Maureen A. Lefton-Greif.

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Lefton-Greif, M.A., Okelo, S.O., Wright, J.M. et al. Impact of Children’s Feeding/Swallowing Problems: Validation of a New Caregiver Instrument. Dysphagia 29, 671–677 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00455-014-9560-7

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00455-014-9560-7

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