Objectives: To estimate the prevalence and losses in quality-adjusted life years (QALYs) associated with 20 child health conditions.
Methods: Using data from the 2009-2010 National Survey of Children with Special Health Care Needs, preference weights were applied to 14 functional difficulties to summarize the quality of life burden of 20 health conditions.
Results: Among the 14 functional difficulties, "a little trouble with breathing" had the highest prevalence (37.1 %), but amounted to a loss of just 0.16 QALYs from the perspective of US adults. Though less prevalent, "a lot of behavioral problems" and "chronic pain" were associated with the greatest losses (1.86 and 3.43 QALYs). Among the 20 conditions, allergies and asthma were the most prevalent but were associated with the least burden. Muscular dystrophy and cerebral palsy were among the least prevalent and most burdensome. Furthermore, a scatterplot shows the association between condition prevalence and burden.
Conclusions: In child health, condition prevalence is negatively associated with quality of life burden from the perspective of US adults. Both should be considered carefully when evaluating the appropriate role for public health prevention and interventions.
Keywords: Child health; Children with special health care needs; Health preference; Quality-adjusted life years.