Colombian School Children With Functional Gastrointestinal Disorders Respond Differently to Family Stress Than Healthy Children

Abstract

Our objective is to compare coping methods, stress responses, and resilience in children with and without functional gastrointestinal disorders (FGIDs) in response to common sources of stress. We performed a case-control study. Children meeting criteria for FGIDs and matched controls completed measures of response to stress (Peer Stress, Family Stress, Academic Problems, and Recurrent Abdominal Pain versions of the Response to Stress Questionnaire) and resilience (Connor-Davidson Resilience Scale 10). We included 134 children with an FGID (57 with functional constipation and 74 with an abdominal pain-predominant FGID) and 135 controls. Children with FGIDs were more likely to take action (P < 0.001) and less likely to remain involuntarily engaged (P < 0.001) in response to family stress. Response to peer and academic stress and measures of resilience were similar between groups. Further research is needed to better understand the role that family stress and a child's response play in the pathophysiology of pediatric FGIDs.