Reviewed 60 studies of depressive symptoms among children and adolescents with chronic medical problems. Findings indicate that children with a chronic medical problem are at slightly elevated risk for depressive symptoms but that most are not clinically depressed. Although great variability in depressive symptoms was found across children with the same disorder, children with certain disorders (e.g., asthma, recurrent abdominal pain, sickle cell anemia) may be at greater risk than children with other disorders (e.g., cancer, cystic fibrosis, diabetes mellitus). Disorder severity was inconsistently related to depressive symptoms, while time since diagnosis, gender, and age were generally unrelated to symptoms. Parent (vs. child) ratings and the use of community (vs. normative) control groups were associated with higher ratings of depressive symptoms among children with a chronic medical problem.

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The authors examined 223 children at age 4 years for the effects of prenatal cocaine exposure, exposure to other substances, maternal and environmental risk factors, and neonatal medical problems on IQ, externalizing problems, and internalizing problems. Regression analyses showed that maternal verbal IQ and low environmental risk predicted child IQ. Cocaine exposure negatively predicted children's overall IQ and verbal reasoning scores, but only for boys. Cocaine exposure also predicted poorer short-term memory. Maternal harsh discipline, maternal depressive symptoms, and increased environmental risk predicted externalizing problems. In contrast, only maternal depressive symptoms predicted internalizing problems. These findings indicate that early exposure to substances is largely unrelated to subsequent IQ or adjustment, particularly for girls. Two important attributes studied in preschool-age children are intelligence and emotionalbehavioral adjustment. By age 4 years, IQ scores are relatively stable and predict academic success during the first few years of elementary school (Kaplan, 1996; Sameroff, Seifer, Baldwin, & Baldwin, 1993). Similarly, externalizing and internalizing problems also exhibit significant stability by age 4, and externalizing problems, in particular, predict later academic and social problems (

Background: A high prevalence of obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) occurs in children with Prader-Willi syndrome (PWS). Yet, due in part to the relatively small samples previously used, the prevalence of OSA has varied greatly across studies. It is also unclear if factors such as age, gender, body mass index (BMI), or type of genetic imprinting are associated with increased risk for OSA among children with PWS. Objectives: To evaluate the (a) prevalence of OSA, as well as narcolepsy, in pediatric populations diagnosed with PWS; (b) effects of age, gender, body mass index, and genetic imprinting on OSA severity; and (c) effi cacy of adenotonsillectomy (AT) for decreasing OSA severity in this population. Methods: All studies assessing OSA among children with PWS through August 2013 were identifi ed using the PubMed/Medline, Psych Info, Cochrane library, and Google Scholar data bases. Results: Fourteen studies of children diagnosed with PWS and who were assessed for OSA using polysomnography (PSG) met inclusion criteria (n = 224 children). The prevalence of OSA across studies was 79.91% (n = 179/224). Among youths with OSA, 53.07% had mild OSA, 22.35% moderate OSA, and 24.58% severe OSA. Narcolepsy was found to occur in 35.71% of children with PWS. Adenotonsillectomy was associated with improvement in OSA for most children with PWS. However, residual OSA was present in the majority of cases post-surgery. Conclusion: This study confi rms the high prevalence of OSA and narcolepsy among children with PWS. Screening for OSA and narcolepsy among children with PWS is recommended. In addition, while adenotonsillectomy was effective in reducing OSA for some children, alternative treatments may need to be considered, given the only moderate response rate.

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Cocaine exposure, being male, and a high-risk environment were all predictive of aggressive behavior at 5 years. It is this group of exposed boys at high environmental risk that is most likely to show continued aggression over time.

Parents gave histories of 589 children just before kindergarten. Children were later assessed with teacher, peer, and observer measures of social adjustment in school. Children with higher day-care amounts in each of 3 eras (0-1, 1 -4, and 4-5 years) scored higher on the composite negative adjustment and lower on positive adjustment (however, they also scored lower on teacher-rated internalizing problems). Day care predicted even after statistical control for measures representing alternative explanations, such as family stress and socioeconomic status, accounting for 2.7% of variance in negative adjustment and 2.9% of positive adjustment. Interactions between day care and other variables did not add to predictions of the molar adjustment composites. Extensive infancy care did not in itself predict adjustment, according to planned contrasts that controlled for total amount of day care received across the 3 eras of the child's life.As mothers of young children are increasingly employed in the workforce (U.S. Bureau of the Census, 1990) and young children are spending more time in nonfamilial care, research has increasingly focused on whether and how day care is associated with development. Research has shown several types of associations between aspects of day care and measures of social development.One aspect of day care is extensiveness of nonparental care. The extensiveness of day care experienced by children has shown modest but replicated adverse associations with attachment security, school aggressiveness, and peer adjustment, according to a number of studies and reviews (e.g., Barglow,