Examining emotional and behavioural trajectories in siblings of children with life-limiting conditions

BMC Palliative Care

Table 1 Sample characteristics at baseline

Characteristics	n (%)
Family Information, N = 58
Average Household Income (Canadian Dollars)*
< $40,000	13 (23.2)
$40,000 - <$80,000	20 (35.7)
$80,000 - $120,000	16 (28.6)
>$120,000	7 (12.5)
Total Number of Children Per Family**
2	26 (44.8)
3	12 (20.6)
4	15 (25.8)
≥ 5	5 (8.6)
Number of Participating Siblings Per Family
1	48 (82.8)
> 1	10 (17.2)
Child Information, N = 58
Time Since First Sought Treatment***
≤ 1 year	11 (19.0)
> 1 year	47 (81.0)
Child’s Diagnosis
Severe neurological impairment – not yet diagnosed	13 (22.4)
Epileptic encephalopathy/neurodegenerative disease	10 (17.2)
Mitochondrial encephalomyopathy	10 (17.2)
Lysosomal/Peroxisomal leukodystrophy	8 (13.8)
Multi-organ congenital abnormalities	6 (10.3)
Others^	11 (19.0)
Sibling Information, N = 70
Sibling Sex
Male	31 (44.3)
Female	39 (55.7)
Sibling Age, Mean/Standard Deviation (SD)	11.2/3.2
Birth Order of Siblings^┼
Older than the ill child	46 (65.7)
Younger than the ill child	24 (34.3)

*percentages do not add up due to missing data
**The total number of children per family includes the child with a progressive metabolic, genetic, and neurological condition
***Time since first sought treatment refers to the duration between siblings’ study enrolment and when parents first sought medical treatment after noticing something was wrong with their ill child
^Others: Structural CNS abnormalities, Neuromuscular disease, small molecules disease, other conditions not specified
^┼Birth order of siblings refers to the siblings’ rank in relation to the ill child i.e., older than or younger than the ill child

ISSN: 1472-684X