Children’s experience of screening and evaluation for MASLD in overweight and obesity

IF 2.4 4区医学 Q3 ENDOCRINOLOGY & METABOLISM

Obesity research & clinical practice Pub Date : 2026-01-01 Epub Date: 2025-12-27 DOI:10.1016/j.orcp.2025.12.010

Anne-Sophie R. Stroes, Laura Draijer, Hedy A. van Oers, Malika Chegary, Felix Kreier, Erim van Os, Joery Goede, Venje Boonstra, Ilse Westerbeek, Saskia Bouma, D. Meeike Kusters, Roosje Roelants, Ulrich Beuers, Adriaan G. Holleboom, Marc A. Benninga, Bart G.P. Koot

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引用次数: 0

Abstract

Objective

This study evaluates self-reported discomfort in children undergoing screening and evaluation for Metabolic Dysfunction-Associated Steatotic Liver Disease (MASLD) that includes blood sampling and vibration-controlled transient elastography (VCTE) or shear-wave elastography (SWE).

Methods

In this cross-sectional multicenter cohort study, children with overweight or obesity, referred for MASLD evaluation after elevated ALT, were included. Children subsequently underwent anthropometric measurements, blood sampling, VCTE, and SWE during an outpatient visit. Discomfort was assessed using the validated “Discomfort in Research with Children” (DISCO-RC) questionnaire on a 5-point Likert scale.

Results

118 children (mean age 13 years) were included. Discomfort related to MASLD screening was low, with median domain scores of 1–2 before the MASLD evaluation visit and 1 after. Prior to the visit, 76–82 % reported “no” to “slight” discomfort (score 1–2) across domains; during the visit, this was 91–95 %. Median procedural discomfort per domain was 1 for both VCTE and SWE, though cumulative discomfort (6 domains) was greater for VCTE than SWE (8 [IQR 6,9] versus 7 [IQR 6,8] p < 0.001).

Conclusions

Screening and subsequent evaluation for MASLD, including VCTE or SWE for liver fibrosis assessment, is associated with minimal discomfort and is highly acceptable to children, supporting this screening strategy in pediatric clinical practice.

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超重和肥胖儿童MASLD筛查和评估的经验。

目的：本研究评估接受代谢功能障碍相关脂肪变性肝病（MASLD）筛查和评估的儿童自我报告的不适，包括血液采样和振动控制瞬时弹性成像（VCTE）或剪切波弹性成像（SWE）。方法：在这项横断面多中心队列研究中，纳入了ALT升高后进行MASLD评估的超重或肥胖儿童。随后，儿童在门诊期间接受了人体测量、血液采样、VCTE和SWE。不适评估使用有效的“不适的研究与儿童”（DISCO-RC）问卷5分李克特量表。结果：纳入118例儿童，平均年龄13岁。与MASLD筛查相关的不适感较低，MASLD评估访问前和访问后的中位域得分分别为1-2分和1分。在访问之前，76-82 %的人在各个领域报告“没有”到“轻微”不适（得分1-2）；在访问期间，这是91-95 %。VCTE和SWE的每个域的程序性不适中位数均为1，尽管VCTE的累积不适（6个域）大于SWE (8 [IQR 6,9]对7 [IQR 6,8] p 结论：对MASLD进行筛查和后续评估，包括VCTE或SWE进行肝纤维化评估，与最小的不适相关，并且对儿童来说是高度可接受的，支持儿科临床实践中的这种筛查策略。

本文章由计算机程序翻译，如有差异，请以英文原文为准。

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来源期刊

Obesity research & clinical practice 医学-内分泌学与代谢

CiteScore

7.10

自引率

0.00%

发文量

审稿时长

49 days

期刊介绍： The aim of Obesity Research & Clinical Practice (ORCP) is to publish high quality clinical and basic research relating to the epidemiology, mechanism, complications and treatment of obesity and the complication of obesity. Studies relating to the Asia Oceania region are particularly welcome, given the increasing burden of obesity in Asia Pacific, compounded by specific regional population-based and genetic issues, and the devastating personal and economic consequences. The journal aims to expose health care practitioners, clinical researchers, basic scientists, epidemiologists, and public health officials in the region to all areas of obesity research and practice. In addition to original research the ORCP publishes reviews, patient reports, short communications, and letters to the editor (including comments on published papers). The proceedings and abstracts of the Annual Meeting of the Asia Oceania Association for the Study of Obesity is published as a supplement each year.