Diagnosis of Autoimmune Conditions in Children

Autoimmune conditions are a type of long-term illness that involve the body’s defence or immune system mistakenly attacking the body’s healthy tissues, which can cause a variety of short- and long-term health problems. These conditions are relatively rare, but the earlier we detect them and start treatment, the better the outcomes for patients.

The symptoms of autoimmune conditions can be very general including stomach pain, tiredness, and poor growth. When these conditions begin, often during childhood, it can often be hard for General Practitioners (GPs) to know if the symptoms children have are because of a more common illness with similar symptoms or from a rare autoimmune condition. This can lead to a delay in ordering the tests needed to detect the condition and delay the start of treatment. Late diagnoses mean people live with symptoms for longer and may spend more time in the hospital or have worse health outcomes in the long-term.

The four autoimmune conditions in children that we are interested in studying are Type 1 Diabetes, Inflammatory Bowel Disease, Juvenile Arthritis and Coeliac Disease. We will use interviews with both doctors (20-25 GPs) and parents/carers (30-40 families) to understand their experiences. Our goal is to understand how these conditions are currently diagnosed, when it goes well, when these conditions are missed, and when diagnoses are made late. For parents, we want to understand their lived experiences surrounding the diagnosis with the autoimmune condition. The information from all of the interviews will help us to better understand where we can potentially help doctors in their decision making to recognize these conditions sooner. It will also help us to know what information is helpful to share with families when these conditions are diagnosed.

Amount Awarded: £13,350