Guerrini Usubini Anna, Bottacchi Michela, Morelli Giovanna, Caroli Diana, Marazzi Nicoletta, Castelnuovo Gianluca, Sartorio Alessandro
Psychology Research Laboratory, Istituto Auxologico Italiano, Istituto di Ricovero e Cura a Carattere Scientifico (IRCCS), Milan, Italy.
Division of Auxology, Istituto Auxologico Italiano, Istituto di Ricovero e Cura a Carattere Scientifico (IRCCS), Piancavallo-Verbania, Italy.
Front Psychol. 2024 Jan 15;14:1205113. doi: 10.3389/fpsyg.2023.1205113. eCollection 2023.
Childhood obesity is associated with poor psychological adjustment. Severely impacts the psychological adjustment of young patients. To assess the psychological functioning of children and adolescents, several questionnaires have been proposed so far. Although the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ) is one of the most well-used tools, its application in obesity research is scarce. The study is aimed at assessing the psychological profile of a sample of Italian children and adolescents seeking an in-hospital multidisciplinary body weight reduction program for obesity, via SDQ.
One hundred and fourteen consecutive Italian children and adolescents with obesity (43 males/71 females, age range: 11-17 years, mean age ± SD: 15.1 ± 1.66, body mass index-BMI ± SD: 37.4 ± 6.13 kg/m), were recruited at the Division of Auxology, Istituto Auxologico Italiano IRCCS, Piancavallo (VB).
Obese Females reported worse conditions of emotional symptoms ( = 5.48; < 0.001) and peer problems ( = 2.34; = 0.021), as well as higher which were associated with greater scores of pro-social behaviors than obese males ( = 3.07; = 0.003). The total difficulties score ( = 4.00; < 0.001) and the total impact score ( = 4.53; < 0.001) were significantly higher in females than males. No statistically significant differences in SDQ variables were found in relation to the degree of obesity (BMI SDS: 2-2.99; BMI SDS: > 3).
These findings can contribute to understand the psychological condition of adolescents with obesity in a better way and also to develop effective interventions for the treatment of pediatric obesity which not only take into account the medical and physical aspects but also the emotional and social difficulties expressed by adolescents with obesity.
儿童肥胖与心理调适不良有关。严重影响年轻患者的心理调适。为了评估儿童和青少年的心理功能，目前已经提出了几份问卷。尽管优势与困难问卷（SDQ）是使用最广泛的工具之一，但其在肥胖研究中的应用却很少。本研究旨在通过SDQ评估寻求住院多学科肥胖体重减轻计划的意大利儿童和青少年样本的心理特征。
连续招募了114名患有肥胖症的意大利儿童和青少年（43名男性/71名女性，年龄范围：11 - 17岁，平均年龄±标准差：15.1±1.66，体重指数 - BMI±标准差：37.4±6.13kg/m²），来自意大利IRCCS皮安卡瓦洛（VB）伊塔洛辅助学研究所辅助学部门。
肥胖女性报告的情绪症状状况更差（ = 5.48； < 0.001）和同伴问题更严重（ = 2.34； = 0.021），并且与肥胖男性相比，与亲社会行为得分更高相关的因素也更高（ = 3.07； = 0.003）。女性的总困难得分（ = 4.00； < 0.001）和总影响得分（ = 4.53； < 0.001）显著高于男性。在SDQ变量方面，未发现与肥胖程度（BMI SDS：2 - 2.99；BMI SDS：> 3）相关的统计学显著差异。
这些发现有助于更好地了解肥胖青少年的心理状况，也有助于开发有效的干预措施来治疗儿童肥胖症，这些干预措施不仅要考虑医学和身体方面，还要考虑肥胖青少年所表达的情感和社会困难。
