The ARCH Lab recently published a paper titled “Health‑related quality of life in children with and without physical–mental multimorbidity” using data from the MY LIFE study.

The purpose of the paper was to:
a) look at health-related quality of life (HRQL) in children across different physical illnesses
b) compare parent and child reports
c) compare HRQL between children with and without physical–mental multimorbidity
d) test if multimorbidity was associated with HRQL

Results showed:
a) HRQL was similar regardless of the type of physical illness the child was diagnosed with
b) parent–child agreement was fair to good for all HRQL domains, regardless of multimorbidity status
c) parent-reported HRQL was significantly lower for children with multimorbidity compared to norms across all domains, whereas child-reported HRQL was significantly lower for physical well-being, psychological well-being, and school environment
d) number of mental illnesses was negatively associated with psychological well-being and school environment in a dose–response manner

These findings are significant, as children with physical–mental multimorbidity are vulnerable to experiencing lower HRQL, particularly for psychological well-being and school environment. Particular attention should be paid to assessing long-term interventions in these areas.