The Latest Children’s Mental Health Journal Articles
Keep up to date with the latest in children’s mental health. Check out the latest children’s mental health articles from leading medical journals in a single view, helping you discover relevant articles quickly and easily
- Variable Emergence of Autism Spectrum Disorder Symptoms From Childhood to Early Adulthood.Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is currently considered an early-onset neurodevelopmental condition. Follow-up studies of clinic-ascertained autism suggest that autistic symptoms typically decline with age, although symptom improvement is limited for some. To date there have been no population-based prospective studies investigating the natural history of autistic symptoms from childhood to adulthood. The aim of this […]
- Intimate partner violence and child outcomes at age 10: a pregnancy cohort.Assess the mental health, physical health, cognitive and language development of 10-year old children in families where mothers have reported intimate partner violence (IPV) compared with children with no reported IPV exposure.Prospective pregnancy cohort. Maternal report of IPV (Composite Abuse Scale) at 1, 4 and 10 years. Maternal and direct assessment of child mental health […]
- The effect of vitamin D and magnesium supplementation on the mental health status of attention-deficit hyperactive children: a randomized controlled trial.Attention-Deficit / Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) is a neurodevelopmental disorder, characterized by varying severity in attention deficit and hyperactivity. Studies have shown deficiencies in the serum level of magnesium and vitamin D in people with ADHD. The aim of this study is to determine the effect of vitamin D and magnesium supplementation on mental health in […]
- Stigma and psychological distress among pediatric participants in the FD/MAS Alliance Patient Registry.Stigma, both enacted and internalized, is part of the illness experience of many chronic conditions / diseases and has been found to increase psychological distress, lower self-esteem, and impact social engagement lowering quality of life (QOL). Stigma among pediatric patients is of particular concern due to its potential impact on identity formation. Using patient data […]
- Health and adverse childhood experiences among homeless youth.Homelessness is associated with health problems and with adverse childhood experiences (ACEs). The risk of chronic health conditions for homeless compared to housed youth, and how this risk interacts with ACEs remains unclear. This study investigated the relationship between ACEs, housing, and child health, and whether: 1) ACEs and health vary by housing context; 2) […]
- Prolonged Emergency Department Length of Stay for US Pediatric Mental Health Visits (2005-2015).Children seeking care in the emergency department (ED) for mental health conditions are at risk for prolonged length of stay (LOS). A more contemporary description of trends and visit characteristics associated with prolonged ED LOS at the national level is lacking in the literature. Our objectives were to (1) compare LOS trends for pediatric mental […]
- Risk Factors for Maltreatment in Siblings of Abused Children.To examine the association between child maltreatment (abuse and neglect) in one sibling and that in another as well as associated risk factors.The participants were 520 sibling pairs enrolled in a population-based birth cohort study in Brisbane, Australia (N = 1040). Exposure to suspected child maltreatment was measured by linkage with state child protection agency […]
- Parents’ experiences of caring for a young child with type 1 diabetes: a systematic review and synthesis of qualitative evidence.To synthesise the qualitative evidence on parents’ experiences of caring for a child aged ≤8 years with type 1 diabetes to identify: the challenges they encounter; their views about support received; ways in which support could be improved; and, directions for future research.We searched Medline, EMBASE, CINAHL, PsycINFO and Web of Science databases to identify qualitative […]
- Bullying in children: impact on child health.Bullying in childhood is a major public health problem that increases the risk of poor health, social and educational outcomes in childhood and adolescence. These consequences are felt by all those involved in bullying (bullies, victims and bully-victims) and are now recognised to propagate deep into adulthood. Cyberbullying is a relatively new type of bullying […]
- Factors associated with problematic internet use among a large sample of Lebanese adolescents.International literature clearly describes factors associated with problematic internet use, including substance dependence, online gambling, social impairment, and functional difficulties. Therefore, it was imperative to assess the extent to which young adolescents in Lebanese schools are affected by problematic internet use (PIU) and the factors associated with it. This large-scale Lebanese survey aims to evaluate […]
- Maternal depressive and anxiety symptoms before and during the COVID-19 pandemic in Canada: a longitudinal analysis.Parents have faced substantial social and economic challenges during the COVID-19 pandemic. Preliminary cross-sectional research has demonstrated increases in mental health problems in mothers during the COVID-19 pandemic compared with pre-pandemic estimates. We aimed to study an existing longitudinal cohort of mothers to assess changes in the prevalence of maternal depression and anxiety symptoms as […]
- Caring for American Indian and Alaska Native Children and Adolescents.American Indian and Alaska Native (AI/AN) populations have substantial health inequities, and most of their disease entities begin in childhood. In addition, AI/AN children and adolescents have excessive disease rates compared with the general pediatric population. Because of this, providers of pediatric care are in a unique position not only to attenuate disease incidence during […]
- Effects of equine-assisted activities on attention and quality of life in children with cerebral palsy in a randomized trial: examining the comorbidity with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder.Attention problems and decreased quality of life are frequently accompanied in Cerebral Palsy (CP), which can negatively affect rehabilitation of physical disability. However, the majority of affected children remain untreated in the aspects of attention or psychosocial factors. Equine-Assisted Activities and Therapies (EAAT) use horse as a therapeutic modality including grooming as well as mounted […]
- Family and Child Risk Factors for Early-Life RSV Illness.Most infants hospitalized with respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) do not meet common “high-risk” criteria and are otherwise healthy. The objective of this study was to quantify the risks and relative importance of socioeconomic factors for severe, early-life RSV-related illness. We hypothesized several of these factors, particularly those indicating severe social vulnerability, would have statistically significant […]
- Gene-environment correlations and causal effects of childhood maltreatment on physical and mental health: a genetically informed approach.Childhood maltreatment is associated with poor mental and physical health. However, the mechanisms of gene-environment correlations and the potential causal effects of childhood maltreatment on health are unknown. Using genetics, we aimed to delineate the sources of gene-environment correlation for childhood maltreatment and the causal relationship between childhood maltreatment and health.We did a genome-wide association […]
- Health Services Use by Children in the Welfare System Who Died by Suicide.To examine characteristics and health service use patterns of suicide decedents with a history of child welfare system involvement to inform prevention strategies and reduce suicide in this vulnerable population.A retrospective matched case-control design (120 suicide decedents and 1200 matched controls) was implemented. Suicide decedents included youth aged 5 to 21 who died by suicide […]
- Reducing negative emotions in children using social robots: systematic review.For many children, visiting the hospital can lead to a state of increased anxiety. Social robots are being explored as a possible tool to reduce anxiety and distress in children attending a clinical or hospital environment. Social robots are designed to communicate and interact through movement, music and speech.This systematic review aims at assessing the […]
- Impact of lockdown and school closure on children in special schools: a single-centre survey.Special schools play a significant role in the daily lives of children and young people with special educational needs and disabilities. We explored the impact of the COVID-19-related first lockdown and resulting school closure by surveying parents whose children attended three special schools in Bedford, UK. We asked about anxiety and impact on emotional well-being […]
- Building a Community Partnership in a Pandemic: NJ Pediatric Residency Advocacy Collaborative.The New Jersey Pediatric Residency Advocacy Collaborative (NJPRAC) is a statewide collaborative with faculty leads from each of the 10 New Jersey pediatric residency programs. The 2 major goals of the collaborative were to build community partnerships between pediatric residency programs and local organizations and develop a core advocacy curriculum. In this article, we focus […]
- Health of mothers of children with a life-limiting condition: a comparative cohort study.This study aimed to quantify the incidence rates of common mental and physical health conditions in mothers of children with a life-limiting condition.Comparative national longitudinal cohort study using linked primary and secondary care data from the Clinical Practice Research Datalink in England. Maternal-child dyads were identified in these data. Maternal physical and mental health outcomes […]
- Efficacy of Intravenous Ketamine in Adolescent Treatment-Resistant Depression: A Randomized Midazolam-Controlled Trial.Adolescent depression is prevalent and is associated with significant morbidity and mortality. Although intravenous ketamine has shown efficacy in adult treatment-resistant depression, its efficacy in pediatric populations is unknown. The authors conducted an active-placebo-controlled study of ketamine’s safety and efficacy in adolescents.In this proof-of-concept randomized, double-blind, single-dose crossover clinical trial, 17 adolescents (ages 13-17) with […]
- Neurobehavioural and cognitive effects of prenatal exposure to organochlorine compounds in three year old children.We report data of a Belgian observational prospective cohort study regarding cognitive and behavioural development until the age of 36 months in relation to internal exposure to organochlorine pollutants [sum of polychlorinated biphenyls (sum PCB), dioxin-like activity, PCB118, PCB170, hexachlorobenzene (HCB) and p,p’-dichlorodiphenyldichloroethylene (DDE)] measured in cord blood.Participants were recruited as part of an Flemish Environmental […]
- COVID-19 mental health impact and responses in low-income and middle-income countries: reimagining global mental health.Most of the global population live in low-income and middle-income countries (LMICs), which have historically received a small fraction of global resources for mental health. The COVID-19 pandemic has spread rapidly in many of these countries. This Review examines the mental health implications of the COVID-19 pandemic in LMICs in four parts. First, we review […]
- The impact of COVID-19 pandemic outbreak on education and mental health of Chinese children aged 7-15 years: an online survey.The emerging of psychological problems triggered by COVID-19 particularly in children have been extensively highlighted and emphasized, but original research in this respect is still lagging behind. Therefore, we designed this study to evaluate the impact of COVID-19 pandemic on mental health and the effectiveness and attitudes towards online education among Chinese children aged 7-15 years.A […]
- Involvement of community paediatricians in the care of children and young people with mental health difficulties in the UK: implications for case ascertainment by child and adolescent psychiatric, and paediatric surveillance systems.To ascertain the extent to which community paediatricians are involved in the care of children with mental health conditions in order to determine which difficulties are appropriate for single or joint surveillance by the British Paediatric Surveillance Unit (BPSU) and Child and Adolescent Psychiatry Surveillance System (CAPSS).An online survey of the 1120 members of the […]
- Keeping young people connected during COVID-19: the role of online groups.The COVID-19 pandemic has had a profound impact on young people, disrupting education, routines, hobbies and peer interactions and there is concern for longer term effects on physical and mental health outcomes. Young people living with chronic health conditions face additional challenges including reduced or no face-to-face contact with medical teams, shielding and the increased […]
- Sleep-related difficulties in healthy children and adolescents.As sleep-related difficulties are a growing public health concern, it is important to gain an overview of the specific difficulty areas of the most vulnerable individuals: children. The current descriptive study presents the prevalence of sleep-related difficulties in two large samples of healthy children and adolescents and outlines the effects of age, gender, and socioeconomic […]
- Telephone-guided self-help for mental health difficulties in neurological conditions: a randomised pilot trial.This study aimed to conduct a randomised pilot trial to assess the feasibility of a randomised controlled trial (RCT) to investigate the effect of telephone-guided self-help for the treatment of mental health difficulties in children with neurological conditions.Preliminary RCT. The primary outcome measure was the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire.Neurology clinics in a national tertiary paediatric […]
- Mental Health Disorders in Children With Congenital Heart Disease.Data on anxiety, depression, and attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) are lacking for youth with congenital heart disease (CHD), particularly those with simple CHD. This study aims to characterize these disorders in youth with CHD compared to those without CHD.A comparative cross-sectional study was conducted by using the electronic medical records of a large tertiary care hospital […]
- Principles of Care for Young Adults With Co-Occurring Psychiatric and Substance Use Disorders.Over 50% of young adults (defined as individuals aged 18-25 years) with substance use disorders (SUDs) have at least 1 co-occurring psychiatric disorder, and the presence of co-occurring disorders worsens SUD outcomes. Treatment of both co-occurring psychiatric disorders and SUDs in young adults is imperative for optimal treatment, yet many barriers exist to achieving this […]
- Identification of Prenatal Opioid Exposure Within Health Administrative Databases.Health administrative data offer a vital source of data on maternal prenatal opioid exposure (POE). The impact of different methods to estimate POE, especially combining maternal and newborn records, is not known.This population-based cross-sectional study included 454 746 hospital births with linked administrative data in Ontario, Canada, in 2014-2017. POE ascertainment included 3 sources: (1) prenatal […]
- Three-Year Outcomes After Brief Treatment of Substance Use and Mood Symptoms.Screening, brief intervention, and referral to treatment (SBIRT) for adolescents exhibiting co-occurring substance use and mental health problems may improve outcomes and have long-lasting effects. This study examined the relationship between access to SBIRT and substance use, depression and medical diagnoses, and health services use at 1 and 3 years postscreening for such adolescents.The study […]
- A Pilot Study of Transdiagnostic Group Cognitive-behavior Therapy for Anxiety: An Intensive Weekend Intervention.Anxiety disorders are highly prevalent and can cause serious functional impairment. Cognitive-behavioral treatments are effective but they are not always readily available. One factor contributing to this problem is the large number of disorder-specific treatments that require a high level of clinician training and resources, despite the similarity in the mechanisms underlying the various anxiety […]
- International consensus on a standard set of outcome measures for child and youth anxiety, depression, obsessive-compulsive disorder, and post-traumatic stress disorder.A major barrier to improving care effectiveness for mental health is a lack of consensus on outcomes measurement. The International Consortium for Health Outcomes Measurement (ICHOM) has already developed a consensus-based standard set of outcomes for anxiety and depression in adults (including the Patient Health Questionnaire-9, the Generalised Anxiety Disorder 7-item Scale, and the WHO […]
- Effectiveness of hospital clowns for symptom management in paediatrics: systematic review of randomised and non-randomised controlled trials.To evaluate evidence from randomised controlled trials and non-randomised controlled trials on the effectiveness of hospital clowns for a range of symptom clusters in children and adolescents admitted to hospital with acute and chronic conditions.Systematic review of randomised and non-randomised controlled trials.Medline, ISI of Knowledge, Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials, Science Direct, Scopus, American […]
- Size at birth and cognitive function among rural adolescents: a life course epidemiology study protocol of the Kisalaya cohort in Mysuru, South India.It is proven that adverse intrauterine environment results in ‘early life programming,’ alterations in metabolism and physiological development of the fetus, often termed as ‘Developmental Origins of Health and Disease’ (DOHaD) resulting in a smaller size at birth, greater non-communicable diseases (NCD) risk factors during childhood and adolescence, and cardiometabolic disorders in adulthood. Nevertheless, very […]
- Early Physical Abuse and Adult Outcomes.Because most physical abuse goes unreported and researchers largely rely on retrospective reports of childhood abuse or prospective samples with substantiated maltreatment, long-term outcomes of physical abuse in US community samples are unknown. We hypothesized that early childhood physical abuse would prospectively predict adult outcomes in education and economic stability, physical health, mental health, substance […]
- Trajectories of anxiety and depressive symptoms during enforced isolation due to COVID-19 in England: a longitudinal observational study.There is major concern about the impact of the global COVID-19 outbreak on mental health. Several studies suggest that mental health deteriorated in many countries before and during enforced isolation (ie, lockdown), but it remains unknown how mental health has changed week by week over the course of the COVID-19 pandemic. This study aimed to […]
- Reducing Adolescent Psychopathology in Socioeconomically Disadvantaged Children With a Preschool Intervention: A Randomized Controlled Trial.Living in poverty increases exposure to adversities that undermine healthy development, impeding growth in the social-emotional and language skills that support adaptive coping and promote mental health. Evidence-based programs have the potential to improve current preschool practice and strengthen these early skills, potentially reducing risk for later psychopathology. The authors tested the hypothesis that an […]
- Effects of Peer Victimization on Child and Adolescent Physical Health.Peer victimization is recognized as a pressing public health issue, affecting ∼1 in 5 youth. Although extensive research demonstrates the negative effects of peer victimization on youth mental health, considerably less is known about if and how peer victimization adversely impacts physical health. Focusing on studies published in the past 5 years, this state-of-the-art review […]
- Provider Specialty and Receipt of Metabolic Monitoring for Children Taking Antipsychotics.Metabolic monitoring is important for children taking antipsychotic medication, given the risk for increased BMI, impaired glucose metabolism, and hyperlipidemia. The purpose was to examine the influence of provider specialty on the receipt of metabolic monitoring. Specifically, differences in the receipt of recommended care when a child receives outpatient care from a primary care provider […]
- The neurodevelopmental nature of attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder in adults.Population studies have suggested that most adults with attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) did not have the disorder in childhood, challenging the neurodevelopmental conceptualisation of ADHD. Arbitrary definitions of age at onset and lack of defined trajectories were accounted for the findings.The objective of this study was to assess the proportion of individuals presenting with either […]
- Use of virtual reality in the supportive care management of paediatric patients with cancer.Paediatric patients with cancer undergo multiple treatments and procedures that can be invasive and painful. Virtual reality technologies could support the management of paediatric cancer. This Review focuses on the physiological and psychological efficacy of virtual reality in supportive care management. Virtual reality has shown potential in reducing pain scores, pulse rates, and distress scores, […]
- Association of Inflammatory Activity With Larger Neural Responses to Threat and Reward Among Children Living in Poverty.Children exposed to severe, chronic stress are vulnerable to mental and physical health problems across the lifespan. To explain how these problems develop, the neuroimmune network hypothesis suggests that early-life stress initiates a positive feedback loop between peripheral inflammatory cells and networked brain regions involved in threat and reward processing. The authors sought to test […]
- Association of Childhood Lead Exposure With MRI Measurements of Structural Brain Integrity in Midlife.Childhood lead exposure has been linked to disrupted brain development, but long-term consequences for structural brain integrity are unknown.To test the hypothesis that childhood lead exposure is associated with magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) measurements of lower structural integrity of the brain in midlife.The Dunedin Study followed a population-representative 1972-1973 birth cohort in New Zealand (N = 564 […]
- Psychological interventions for depression in children and young people with an intellectual disability and/or autism: systematic review.Children and young people with intellectual disability and/or Autism Spectrum Disorder (autism) experience higher rates of mental health problems, including depression, than their typically developing peers. Although international guidelines suggest psychological therapies as first-line intervention for children and young people, there is limited evidence for psychological therapy for depression in children and young people with […]
- Clinical utility of the parent-reported Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire as a screen for emotional and behavioural difficulties in children and adolescents with intellectual disability.We assessed the clinical utility of the parent-reported Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ) as a screen for emotional and behavioural difficulties in 626 children and young people with intellectual disability. Using the Developmental Behavior Checklist (DBC2-P) to determine clinical caseness, the area under the curve for the SDQ total difficulties score was 0.876 (95% CI […]
- Bullying victimization among Lebanese adolescents: The role of child abuse, Internet addiction, social phobia and depression and validation of the Illinois Bully Scale.Both bullying victimization and perpetration were associated with depression, social phobia, physical and psychological child abuse and Internet addiction in Lebanon. The prevalence of bullying in Lebanon is alarming, with 50% of school-aged children and adolescents reporting being bullied at some point. The high rate of both bullying victimization can be reflective of the inefficacy […]
- ‘The mean mummy way’ – experiences of parents instilling eye drops to their young children as described in online forums and blogs.Adults often have difficulty instilling eye drops in their own eyes, but little has been documented about the difficulties experienced by parents when administering eye drops to their young children, where the challenges of instillation are accentuated by their inability to cooperate. This qualitative study explores parents’ experiences of administering eye drops to their children […]
- Umbrella systematic review of systematic reviews and meta-analyses on comorbid physical conditions in people with autism spectrum disorder.Comorbid physical conditions may be more common in people with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) than other people.To identify what is and what is not known about comorbid physical conditions in people with ASD.We undertook an umbrella systematic review of systematic reviews and meta-analyses on comorbid physical conditions in people with ASD. Five databases were searched. […]
- Kindergarten Readiness, Later Health, and Social Costs.To estimate associations between kindergarten readiness and academic, psychological, and health risks by end of high school.This study is based on 966 Canadian children. At age 5, trained examiners assessed child number knowledge and receptive vocabulary. Teachers reported kindergarten classroom engagement. At age 17, participants reported academic grades, school connectedness, anxiety sensitivity, substance abuse, physical […]
- Trajectories of Maternal Postpartum Depressive Symptoms.To identify homogenous depressive symptom trajectories over the postpartum period and the demographic and perinatal factors linked to different trajectories.Mothers (N = 4866) were recruited for Upstate KIDS, a population-based birth cohort study, and provided assessments of depressive symptoms at 4, 12, 24, and 36 months postpartum. Maternal demographic and perinatal conditions were obtained from […]
- Prebirth Household Challenges To Predict Adverse Childhood Experiences Score by Age 3.With this study, we seek to understand the relationship between prebirth household challenges and the child’s adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) score by age 3 in a statewide-representative birth cohort to inform primary prevention strategies.We used a longitudinally linked data set from the Alaska 2009-2011 Pregnancy Risk Assessment Monitoring System, its 3-year follow-up survey, and multiple […]
- A large-scale genome-wide association study meta-analysis of cannabis use disorder.Variation in liability to cannabis use disorder has a strong genetic component (estimated twin and family heritability about 50-70%) and is associated with negative outcomes, including increased risk of psychopathology. The aim of the study was to conduct a large genome-wide association study (GWAS) to identify novel genetic variants associated with cannabis use disorder.To conduct […]
- Parental experience of prophylactic antibiotics.Long-term prophylactic antibiotics are often used to prevent bacterial infections. However, supporting evidence for this is not always robust. Including parents in decisions relating to medication is key to medicines optimisation. Parental concern regarding medication is a major determinant of poor adherence. This study explores parental experiences of having a child prescribed prophylactic antibiotics and […]
- Environmental risk factors, protective factors, and peripheral biomarkers for ADHD: an umbrella review.Many potential environmental risk factors, environmental protective factors, and peripheral biomarkers for ADHD have been investigated, but the consistency and magnitude of their effects are unclear. We aimed to systematically appraise the published evidence of association between potential risk factors, protective factors, or peripheral biomarkers, and ADHD.In this umbrella review of meta-analyses, we searched PubMed […]
- Oral health behavior among school children aged 11-13 years in Saveh, Iran: an evaluation of a theory-driven intervention.Good oral health (OH) is essential for physical, social, mental health, and overall quality of life. This study assessed the usefulness of the theory of planned behavior (TPB) in changing oral health-related behaviors among school children aged 11-13 years in Saveh, Iran.In this descriptive before and after study, participants were sixth-grade students at single sex primary […]
- Designing a paediatric hospital information tool with children, parents, and healthcare staff: a UX study.The hospital patient pathway for having treatment procedures can be daunting for younger patients and their family members, especially when they are about to undergo a complex intervention. Opportunities to mentally prepare young patients for their hospital treatments, e.g. for surgical procedures, include tools such as therapeutic clowns, medical dolls, or books and board games. […]
- Educational attainment trajectories among children and adolescents with depression, and the role of sociodemographic characteristics: longitudinal data-linkage study.Depression is associated with lower educational attainment, but there has been little investigation of long-term educational trajectories in large cohorts with diagnosed depression.To describe the educational attainment trajectories of children with a depression diagnosis in secondary care, and to investigate whether these trajectories vary by sociodemographic characteristics.We identified new referrals to South London and Maudsley’s […]
- Epidemiological surveillance study of female genital mutilation in the UK.Describe cases of female genital mutilation (FGM) presenting to consultant paediatricians and sexual assault referral centres (SARCs), including demographics, medical symptoms, examination findings and outcome.The well-established epidemiological surveillance study performed through the British Paediatric Surveillance Unit included FGM on the monthly returns.All consultant paediatricians and relevant SARC leads across the UK and Ireland.Under 16 years […]