Baseline Quality of Life in Pediatric Patients With Low-flow Vascular Malformations

Objective: The aim of this study was to quantify and describe baseline patient and parent-proxy health-related quality of life scores in patients with low-flow vascular malformations at a single, tertiary-care vascular anomalies clinic. Study design: This is a retrospective study of data collected on patients with low-flow vascular malformations between the ages of 2 to 25 who were seen at a single, tertiary-care center vascular anomalies clinic. A total of 266 patients are included in this study. Results: Patients with lymphatic malformations report decreased quality of life scores as compared with venous malformations in the emotional, psychological, school, and social domains. Patients with lower extremity malformation report decreased quality of life scores as compared with head/neck, trunk, upper extremity, and multifocal malformations; most notably in the physical domain. Conclusions: Treatment of low-flow vascular malformations should aim to improve patient quality of life. The use of standardized health-related quality of life measures in this study quantifies baseline quality of life scores among patients with low-flow vascular malformations.