Psychosocial functioning in pediatric food allergies: A scoping review

The psychosocial burden of food allergy (FA) can significantly affect the lives of pediatric patients and their families. A comprehensive understanding of the state of the literature on psychosocial functioning is imperative to identify gaps that may affect clinical care and future research. This review characterizes the current literature on psychosocial functioning in pediatric patients with FA and their caregivers, siblings, and families. A literature search of 5 databases (PubMed, Ovid MEDLINE, PsycINFO, Web of Science, and Embase) was conducted to identify original research articles and abstracts on psychosocial functioning of patients with FA who were aged 0 to 18 years and their caregivers, siblings, and families. A total of 257 studies met the inclusion criteria. The majority of studies examined child or caregiver psychosocial functioning, with child and caregiver quality of life examined most frequently. Most studies utilized quantitative and cross-sectional methods and inconsistently reported participant race and ethnicity. Existing research on psychosocial functioning in pediatric FA may not be generalizable to patients of color and families and siblings. Future research should diversify recruited samples regarding race, ethnicity, and country of origin; examine psychosocial functioning longitudinally; examine constructs beyond quality of life; and adopt a biopsychosocial approach by considering the interplay among psychosocial functioning, disease burden, and social contexts.