Efficacy of a family systems theory-based integrated care protocol for children with helicobacter pylori-associated gastritis.

OBJECTIVE

To investigate the outcome of a Family Systems Theory-Based integrated care protocol in children with Helicobacter pylori(Hp)-associated gastritis.

METHODOLOGY: A retrospective analysis was performed on 180 children with Hp-associated gastritis at Maternity & Child Care Center of Qinhuangdao enrolled between January 2024 to June 2025. Based on the type of care intervention received, the children were divided into two groups via a 1:1 matching protocol. The control group(n=90) received conventional care, whereas the observation group (n=90) received the integrated care protocol based on Family Systems Theory. Compared the medical adherence rate and disease recurrence rate between the two groups of children.

RESULTS

At four weeks after care intervention, the observation group exhibited significantly higher scores for the MUIS-FM dimensions of lack of clarity, unpredictability, information deficiency, and ambiguity compared with the control group(all P<0.05). The PedsQLTM4.0 scores in the observation group were significantly higher at two weeks and four weeks after care intervention than those in the control group(P<0.05). In contrast, the STAI-Y scores in the observation group were significantly lower at two weeks and four weeks after care intervention compared with the control group(P<0.05). Furthermore, the observation group had a significantly higher medical adherence rate and a significantly lower disease recurrence rate than the control group(P<0.05).

CONCLUSION

Implementation of the integrated care protocol based on Family Systems Theory for children with Hp-associated gastritis can alleviate the level of illness uncertainty among primary caregivers, improve children's quality of life, enhance their medical adherence, and reduce the disease recurrence rate.