Maes Marlies, Van den Noortgate Wim, Fustolo-Gunnink Suzanne F, Rassart Jessica, Luyckx Koen, Goossens Luc
Research Group of School Psychology and Development in Context (SCenO).
KU Leuven, Research Group of Methodology of Educational Sciences.
J Pediatr Psychol. 2017 Jul 1;42(6):622-635. doi: 10.1093/jpepsy/jsx046.
This meta-analysis examines loneliness in children and adolescents with chronic physical conditions as compared with their peers. Multilevel meta-analyses were performed on 43 studies (69 samples), published between 1987 and 2015. A total of 2,518 individuals with chronic physical conditions and 1,463 control peers were included in the analyses. Children and adolescents with chronic conditions are, on average, somewhat lonelier than their peers without such conditions. Moreover, the link between chronic conditions and loneliness varied according to the recruitment procedure used for participant selection. Stronger links were found for studies that recruited from patient organizations as compared with clinical registers. Findings support the link between loneliness and chronic conditions. To take into account the heterogeneity within patient groups, we advocate an alternative approach that cuts across diagnostic boundaries and focuses on illness-related variables such as illness duration and visibility of the condition.
本荟萃分析将患有慢性身体疾病的儿童和青少年与其同龄人进行比较，研究他们的孤独感。对1987年至2015年间发表的43项研究（69个样本）进行了多层次荟萃分析。分析共纳入了2518名患有慢性身体疾病的个体和1463名对照同龄人。平均而言，患有慢性疾病的儿童和青少年比没有此类疾病的同龄人略显孤独。此外，慢性病与孤独感之间的联系因参与者选择所采用的招募程序而异。与从临床登记处招募的研究相比，从患者组织招募的研究发现两者之间的联系更强。研究结果支持孤独感与慢性病之间的联系。为了考虑患者群体内部的异质性，我们提倡一种跨越诊断界限、关注与疾病相关变量（如病程和疾病可见性）的替代方法。
