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Review
. 2022 Sep 11;14(9):e29042.
doi: 10.7759/cureus.29042. eCollection 2022 Sep.

The Other Sibling: A Systematic Review of the Mental Health Effects on a Healthy Sibling of a Child With a Chronic Disease

Maria G Quintana Mariñez  1 , Mohana Chakkera  2 , Niriksha Ravi  2 , Rajita Ramaraju  3 , Aastha Vats  3 , Athira R Nair  3 , Atithi K Bandhu  2 , Divya Koirala  2 , Manoj R Pallapothu  3 , Safeera Khan  2
Affiliations
Review

The Other Sibling: A Systematic Review of the Mental Health Effects on a Healthy Sibling of a Child With a Chronic Disease

Maria G Quintana Mariñez et al. Cureus. .

Abstract

The Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) defines chronic diseases broadly as conditions that last over one year and require ongoing medical attention or limit activities of daily living or both. The diagnosis of a child with a chronic disease affects parents' mental health and functioning, included in this are the siblings of this child. The impact on a sibling of a child with chronic disease involves higher risks of anxiety, depression, feelings of worry about the brother or sister's future, and social problems.Three databases search were performed, and 16 articles were assessed in this systematic review that complies with inclusion and exclusion criteria.The siblings of those with chronic illnesses have higher reported emotional, behavioral, and social problems than those with healthy siblings. More research and studies with control groups and larger samples could contribute to a better understanding of the long-term effects of having a sibling with a chronic disease.

Keywords: chronic conditions; chronic illness; mental health; psychosocial; siblings of chronic disease.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors have declared that no competing interests exist.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1. Identification of studies via databases and registers.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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