Oct. 2003 Volume 13, No. 2
INCLUDED IN THIS ISSUE…
PRESIDENT'S MESSAGE
SCCASP Meritorious Service Award
Mike Goodman Lifetime Achievement Award
CASP CONVENTION
MESSAGE FROM CASP
MENTAL HEALTH NOTES
IN THE NEWS
COOL LINKS
UPCOMING EVENTS
SCCASP MEMBERSHIP FORM
EXECUTIVE BOARD DIRECTORY
EXECUTIVE BOARD MEETING
SCHEDULE (TENTATIVE)
EXECUTIVE BOARD MEETING
MINUTES
NEW BOOKS
JOB LISTINGS
JOB SURVEY
NOTE FROM THE EDITOR
NEWSLETTER SUBMISSION
GUIDELINES
BULLETIN BOARD
ALLIANT INTERNATIONAL UNIVERSITY
TRAGEDY RELIEF WEBSITES
MESSAGE FROM THE WEB GUY
BRIEF NOTES ON....
THE MENTAL HEALTH OF CHILDREN & ADOLESCENTS
The future of our country depends on the mental health and strength of our young people. However, many children have mental health problems that interfere with normal development and functioning. In the U.S., 1 in 10 children and adolescents suffer from mental illness severe enough to cause some level of impairment. However, in any given year, it is estimated that fewer than 1 in 5 of these children receives needed treatment. Recent evidence compiled by the World Health Organization indicates that by the year 2020, childhood neuropsychiatric disorders will rise proportionately by over 50 percent, internationally, to become one of the five most common causes of morbidity, mortality, and disability among children. The mental health problems affecting children and adolescents include the following:
Depression
Large-scale research studies have reported that up to 3 percent of children and up to 8 percent of adolescents in the U.S. suffer from depression, a serious mental disorder that adversely affects mood, energy, interest, sleep, appetite, and overall functioning. In contrast to normal emotional experiences of sadness or passing mood states, the symptoms of depression are extreme and persistent and can interfere significantly with the ability to function at home or at school. There is evidence that depression emerging early in life often recurs and continues into adulthood, and that early onset depression may predict more severe illness in adult life. Diagnosing and treating children and adolescents with depression is critical in preventing impairment in academic, social, emotional, and behavioral functioning and to allow children to live up to their full potential.
Depression in children and adolescents is associated with an increased risk of suicidal behaviors. Since 1964, the suicide rate among adolescents and young adults has doubled. In 1996, the most recent year for which statistics are available, suicide was the 3rd leading cause of death in 15 to 24 year olds and the 4th leading cause among 10 to 14 year olds.
Antidepressant medications are prescribed to treat children and adolescents with depression. Recent studies indicate that certain selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) are safe and efficacious treatments for depression in young people. However, care must be used in prescribing and monitoring all medication. Special forms of psychotherapy, such as cognitive-behavioral therapy, have proved effective for adolescents with depression, and current studies are evaluating the effectiveness of individual, family, and group therapies for young people. A current multi-site study of adolescents who are depressed is evaluating the comparative effectiveness of medication, psychosocial, or combined treatments.
Anxiety Disorders
Anxiety disorders are the most common mental health problems that occur in children and adolescents. According to one large-scale study of 9 to 17 year olds, entitled Methods for the Epidemiology of Child and Adolescent Mental Disorders (MECA), as many as 13 percent of young people had an anxiety disorder in a year.
Generalized Anxiety Disorder: symptoms include exaggerated worry and tension over everyday events.
Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD): characterized by intrusive, unwanted, repetitive thoughts and rituals performed out of a feeling of urgent need; at least one-third of adult cases begins in childhood.
Panic Disorder: characterized by feelings of extreme fear and dread that strike unexpectedly and repeatedly for no apparent reason, often accompanied by intense physical symptoms, such as chest pain, pounding heart, shortness of breath, dizziness, or abdominal distress.
Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD): a condition that can occur after exposure to a terrifying event, most often characterized by the repeated re-experience of the ordeal in the form of frightening, intrusive memories, and brings on hypervigilance and deadening of normal emotions.
Phobias: social phobia, extreme fear of embarrassment or being scrutinized; specific phobia, excessive fear of an object or situation, such as dogs, heights, loud sounds, flying, costumed characters, enclosed spaces, etc.
Other disorders: separation anxiety, excessive anxiety concerning separation from the home or from those to whom the person is most attached; and selective mutism, persistent failure to speak in specific social situations.
Various forms of psychotherapy, including cognitive-behavioral therapy and family therapy, as well as certain medications, particularly selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs), are used to treat anxiety disorders in children and adolescents. Research on the safety and efficacy of these treatments is ongoing.
The future of our country depends on the mental health and strength of our young people. However, many children have mental health problems that interfere with normal development and functioning. In the U.S., 1 in 10 children and adolescents suffer from mental illness severe enough to cause some level of impairment. However, in any given year, it is estimated that fewer than 1 in 5 of these children receives needed treatment. Recent evidence compiled by the World Health Organization indicates that by the year 2020, childhood neuropsychiatric disorders will rise proportionately by over 50 percent, internationally, to become one of the five most common causes of morbidity, mortality, and disability among children. The mental health problems affecting children and adolescents include the following:
Depression
Large-scale research studies have reported that up to 3 percent of children and up to 8 percent of adolescents in the U.S. suffer from depression, a serious mental disorder that adversely affects mood, energy, interest, sleep, appetite, and overall functioning. In contrast to normal emotional experiences of sadness or passing mood states, the symptoms of depression are extreme and persistent and can interfere significantly with the ability to function at home or at school. There is evidence that depression emerging early in life often recurs and continues into adulthood, and that early onset depression may predict more severe illness in adult life. Diagnosing and treating children and adolescents with depression is critical in preventing impairment in academic, social, emotional, and behavioral functioning and to allow children to live up to their full potential.
Depression in children and adolescents is associated with an increased risk of suicidal behaviors. Since 1964, the suicide rate among adolescents and young adults has doubled. In 1996, the most recent year for which statistics are available, suicide was the 3rd leading cause of death in 15 to 24 year olds and the 4th leading cause among 10 to 14 year olds.
Antidepressant medications are prescribed to treat children and adolescents with depression. Recent studies indicate that certain selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) are safe and efficacious treatments for depression in young people. However, care must be used in prescribing and monitoring all medication. Special forms of psychotherapy, such as cognitive-behavioral therapy, have proved effective for adolescents with depression, and current studies are evaluating the effectiveness of individual, family, and group therapies for young people. A current multi-site study of adolescents who are depressed is evaluating the comparative effectiveness of medication, psychosocial, or combined treatments.
Anxiety Disorders
Anxiety disorders are the most common mental health problems that occur in children and adolescents. According to one large-scale study of 9 to 17 year olds, entitled Methods for the Epidemiology of Child and Adolescent Mental Disorders (MECA), as many as 13 percent of young people had an anxiety disorder in a year.
Generalized Anxiety Disorder: symptoms include exaggerated worry and tension over everyday events.
Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD): characterized by intrusive, unwanted, repetitive thoughts and rituals performed out of a feeling of urgent need; at least one-third of adult cases begins in childhood.
Panic Disorder: characterized by feelings of extreme fear and dread that strike unexpectedly and repeatedly for no apparent reason, often accompanied by intense physical symptoms, such as chest pain, pounding heart, shortness of breath, dizziness, or abdominal distress.
Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD): a condition that can occur after exposure to a terrifying event, most often characterized by the repeated re-experience of the ordeal in the form of frightening, intrusive memories, and brings on hypervigilance and deadening of normal emotions.
Phobias: social phobia, extreme fear of embarrassment or being scrutinized; specific phobia, excessive fear of an object or situation, such as dogs, heights, loud sounds, flying, costumed characters, enclosed spaces, etc.
Other disorders: separation anxiety, excessive anxiety concerning separation from the home or from those to whom the person is most attached; and selective mutism, persistent failure to speak in specific social situations.
Various forms of psychotherapy, including cognitive-behavioral therapy and family therapy, as well as certain medications, particularly selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs), are used to treat anxiety disorders in children and adolescents. Research on the safety and efficacy of these treatments is ongoing.
Eating Disorders
In the U.S., eating disorders are most common among adolescent and young women. In addition to causing various physical health problems, eating disorders are associated with illnesses such as depression, substance abuse, and anxiety disorders. Among adolescent and young adult women in the U.S., it is estimated that between 0.5 and 1.0 percent suffer from anorexia nervosa, 1 to 3 percent have bulimia nervosa, and 0.7 to 4 percent experience binge-eating disorder. There are limited data concerning the prevalence in males.
Similar to other mental disorders, such as obsessive-compulsive disorder and depression, patients with eating disorders have little control over their symptoms, and suffer from often serious and sometimes life-threatening illnesses that require medical and psychiatric attention. Because of their complexity, eating disorders call for a comprehensive treatment plan involving medical care and monitoring, psychotherapy, nutritional counseling, and medication management. Studies are investigating the causes of eating disorders and effectiveness of treatments.
Autism and Other Pervasive Developmental Disorders
Autism and other pervasive developmental disorders are brain disorders that occurs in as many as 2 in 1,000 Americans. They typically affect the ability to communicate, form relationships with others, and respond appropriately to the outside world. The signs of autism usually develop by 3 years of age. The symptoms and deficits associated with autism may vary among people with the disorder. While some individuals with autism function at a relatively high level, with speech and intelligence intact, others are developmentally delayed, mute, or have serious language difficulty.
Research has made it possible to identify earlier those children who show signs of developing autism and thus initiate early intervention. Both psychosocial and pharmacological interventions can improve the behavioral and cognitive functioning of children with autism. Studies to evaluate medications such as risperidone and valproate are investigating their effects on cognition, behavior, and development, as well as their safety and efficacy. Emerging evidence is suggesting that certain genetic factors may confer susceptibility to the disorder and studies are underway to better understand this process. The prospect of acquiring basic biologic knowledge about autism holds hope for the development of future therapies.
NIH Publication No. 01-4589