Children with chronic health conditions

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Chronic health conditions (both chronic illnesses and chronic physical disabilities) are generally defined as those conditions that last gt; 12 months and are severe enough to create some limitations in usual activity. It has been estimated that chronic health conditions affect 10 to 30% of children, depending on the criteria. Examples of chronic illnesses include asthma, cystic fibrosis, congenital heart disease, diabetes mellitus, attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder, and depression. Examples of chronic physical disabilities include meningomyelocele, hearing impairments or visual impairments, cerebral palsy, and loss of limb function.