ABSTRACT
Create and evaluate the psychometric properties of the Quality of Life in the Neighborhood Questionnaire for Children 8 to 10 years of Age (QoL-N-Kids 8-10). The present study was conducted in a medium-sized city in southeastern Brazil with children at four public schools and one private school. The study involved three phases: a) generation and validation of the content of the items through a qualitative study and expert panel (n = 8); b) face validity through a pilot study and interviews with children (n = 30); and c) application of the final version (n = 261) for the evaluation of internal consistency, temporal stability, construct validity and discriminant validity. All statistical tests applied during this step were interpreted considering a 5% significance level. Among the 56 items generated, 38 were maintained in the scale and submitted to face validation. In this phase, the children suggested the inclusion of an additional item, resulting in a measure with 39 items. The questionnaire was submitted to reliability tests (Cronbach's alpha) and exploratory factor analysis, leading to a questionnaire with 27 items distributed among five domains. The measures exhibited good internal consistency (Cronbach's alpha = 0.805) and good test-retest reliability (weighted Kappa = 0.305 to 0.724; intraclass correlation coefficient = 0.917). Regarding discriminant validity, differences between groups (p < 0.001) were found for sex, age, income and place of residence. The QoL-N-Kids 8-10 instrument exhibited satisfactory psychometric properties and has potential for the assessment of neighborhood quality of life in children eight to ten years of age.
ABSTRACT
PURPOSE: The purpose of this study was to determine the prevalence of developmental defects of enamel in patients diagnosed with phenylketonuria (PKU). METHODS: The study group consisted of 24 four- to 24-year-old subjects with PKU. The control group consisted of 24 healthy individuals. An examination for the detection of developmental defects of enamel was conducted at the university pediatric dentistry clinic by a single examiner. Data were analyzed using the chi-square test (P<.05) and odds ratios. RESULTS: The prevalence of developmental defects of enamel was 36 percent in the study group and 15 percent in the control group. The maxillary central incisors were the most affected teeth in patients with PKU, while the maxillary and mandibular first molars were the most affected teeth in the control group. Patients with PKU had a 3.3-fold greater chance of exhibiting developmental defects of enamel versus the healthy controls, which was statistically significant (P<.001). CONCLUSION: The study findings suggest that PKU increases the risk of developmental defects of enamel.
