Abdominal pain in children: the role of possible psychosocial disorders.

OBJECTIVE

To evaluate the relationship between functional abdominal pain and biopsychosocial factors: the current diagnostic criteria show limits.

PATIENTS AND

METHODS

This is a retrospective cohort study conducted in paediatric emergency department (ED) of a tertiary hospital in Rome. Children (0-18 years) evaluated for abdominal pain in the paediatric ED between January 2018 and December 2018 were enrolled. Patients were divided in 2 groups: organic and functional groups. The main outcome was the prevalence of different subtypes of functional disorders (according to Rome IV criteria) and the role of possible biopsychosocial disorders related to patients with functional symptoms.

RESULTS

In this study, 1130 patients were included. In the functional group, 37.6% of patients were classified as affected by functional dyspepsia, 26.7% by functional abdominal pain-non otherwise specified (FAP-nos), 20.8% by inflammatory bowel syndrome (IBS), and 15.9% by abdominal migraine. Children of our functional sample reported at least one of the items present in the inventory CSSI-24 (24-item Children's Somatic Symptoms Inventory), but more than 50% reported at least 4 of the items investigated.

CONCLUSIONS

At 6 and 12 months follow up and, new prospective studies on these disorders could improve the inclusion criteria for FGIDs, thinning the dubious rate of patients expected from the literature on the Rome IV criteria.