Li HX, Zhou YJ, Zhou M, Chen C, Chang Y, Wang YL. Related factors associated with the occurrence of depressive disorders in children with asthma. World J Psychiatry 2026; 16(7): 118608 [DOI: 10.5498/wjp.118608]
Corresponding Author of This Article
Hai-Xia Li, Associate Chief Pharmacist, Department of Traditional Chinese Medicine, The Affiliated Children’s Hospital of Xiangya School of Medicine, Central South University (Hunan Children’s Hospital), No. 86 Ziyuan Road, Changsha 410007, Hunan Province, China. lihaixia2012@126.com
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Psychology, Social
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research-article
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Li HX, Zhou YJ, Zhou M, Chen C, Chang Y, Wang YL. Related factors associated with the occurrence of depressive disorders in children with asthma. World J Psychiatry 2026; 16(7): 118608 [DOI: 10.5498/wjp.118608]
World J Psychiatry. Jul 19, 2026; 16(7): 118608 Published online Jul 19, 2026. doi: 10.5498/wjp.118608
Related factors associated with the occurrence of depressive disorders in children with asthma
Ya-Lu Wang, Yi Chang, Chuang Chen, Min Zhou, You-Jun Zhou, Hai-Xia Li
Hai-Xia Li, You-Jun Zhou, Min Zhou, Chuang Chen, Yi Chang, Ya-Lu Wang, Department of Traditional Chinese Medicine, The Affiliated Children’s Hospital of Xiangya School of Medicine, Central South University (Hunan Children’s Hospital), Changsha 410007, Hunan Province, China
Author contributions: Li HX was responsible for research design, data analysis, review and editing, communication and coordination, ethical review, copyright and licensing and follow-up; Zhou YJ and Zhou M participated in research design, data collection, data analysis and paper writing; Chen C was responsible for research design and data collection; Chang Y was responsible for data analysis; Wang YL was responsible for fund application, review and editing; all authors have read and accepted the final manuscript.
Supported by National Integrated Traditional Chinese and Western Medicine “Flagship” Department Construction Project, No. 335; the Major Project of Health Science Research of Hunan Province, No. 20255835; the Joint Project of Medical and Health Industry of Hunan Provincial Natural Science Foundation, No. 2025JJ80627; and the Chronic Disease Management Research Project of National Health Commission Capacity Building and Continuing Education Center, No. GWJJMB202510023056.
Institutional review board statement: The research was reviewed and approved by the Ethics Committee of Hunan Children’s Hospital, No. KY2025-68.
Informed consent statement: All participants provided informed consent.
Conflict-of-interest statement: All authors declare no conflict of interest in publishing the manuscript.
STROBE statement: The authors have read the STROBE Statement – checklist of items, and the manuscript was prepared and revised according to the STROBE Statement – checklist of items.
Data sharing statement: No other data available.
Corresponding author: Hai-Xia Li, Associate Chief Pharmacist, Department of Traditional Chinese Medicine, The Affiliated Children’s Hospital of Xiangya School of Medicine, Central South University (Hunan Children’s Hospital), No. 86 Ziyuan Road, Changsha 410007, Hunan Province, China. lihaixia2012@126.com
Received: January 30, 2026 Revised: February 24, 2026 Accepted: March 27, 2026 Published online: July 19, 2026 Processing time: 146 Days and 10.2 Hours
Abstract
BACKGROUND
Pediatric asthma is a prevalent chronic respiratory disease with a rising global incidence. Beyond physical symptoms, its persistent nature significantly disrupts children’s daily life and social activities. Most patients may exhibit anxiety and depression, reducing treatment adherence and worsening disease control. While the bidirectional relationship between psychological factors and asthma is established, Chinese research has primarily focused on parental emotions, leaving children’s psychological state, particularly depression, underexplored. We hypothesize that identifying key risk factors for depression is crucial for early screening and targeted intervention to improve overall pediatric health outcomes.
AIM
To explore the related factors of asthmatic children with comorbid depression.
METHODS
A retrospective analysis was conducted, selecting 60 children with asthma and depression admitted from January 2023 to June 2025 as the comorbid depression group, and 60 children with asthma without depression during the same period as the non-depression group. Univariate and multivariate logistic regression analyses were performed to identify the related factors for asthmatic children with comorbid depression, and receiver operating characteristic curves were used to assess the correlation strength between each factor and depression.
RESULTS
Univariate and multivariate logistic regression analyses showed that the primary caregiver’s educational level (high school or below), the primary caregiver’s negative emotions (yes), family history of asthma (yes), parents’ awareness of asthma (poor), medication adherence (poor), and asthma control (poor) were all independent related factors for asthmatic children with comorbid depression. Receiver operating characteristic curve analysis showed that each factor had a certain ability to distinguish whether asthma children were complicated with depression, but the prediction efficiency was medium and low.
CONCLUSION
Asthmatic children’s depression risk factors include family environment, disease awareness, and management quality.
Core Tip: This analysis identifies key factors associated with depression in children with asthma, including primary caregivers’ lower education level and negative emotions, poor parental asthma knowledge, medication non-adherence, poor asthma control, and a family history of asthma. While these factors show moderate predictive value individually, they serve as crucial clinical warning signals. Recognizing these multifaceted risks enables early screening and targeted psychological interventions for at-risk children and their families, ultimately improving comprehensive asthma management and pediatric mental health outcomes.
