Risk factors associated with functional dyspepsia in Chinese children: a cross-sectional study

BackgroundThere is no study assessing the risk factors associated with functional dyspepsia (FD) in Chinese children based on the Rome IV criteria.MethodsIn this cross-sectional study, we analyzed data from eight representative primary and secondary schools to assess the risk factors associated with FD in Chinese children based on the Rome IV criteria. ResultsA total of 6976 Chinese children were enrolled. The mean age was 14.32.5 years, with a range from 7 to 17 years, and 3497 (50.1%) participants were female. FD was prevalent in 209 (3.0%) of the Chinese child population studied. Age (OR=1.112, P=0.006), living independent of parents (OR=1.677, P<0.001), prolonged school meals (OR=2.107, P<0.001), never eat breakfast (OR=2.192, P=0.003), often/daily eat cold foods (OR=2.296, P=0.002; OR=2.736, P=0.011), and often eat pickled foods (OR=2.390, P=0.001) were found to be independent risk factors for FD. A nomogram with these risk factors had good discrimination (AUC=0.727) and calibration (Hosmer-Lemeshow test was 0.851).ConclusionsAge, living independent of parents, prolonged school meals, never eat breakfast, often/daily eat cold foods and often eat pickled foods were independent risk factors for FD. The nomogram could be used as a quick screening tool to assess FD in Chinese children.