No abstract

The aim of this study was to estimate the current prevalence of DSM-III-R and ICD-10 psychiatric disorders in Spanish 18-year-old members of the general population. Subjects were assessed using the Schedules for Clinical Assessment in Neuropsychiatry (SCAN). Nearly 30% of the study subjects reported at least one current disorder according to ICD-10 criteria, and almost 21% reported at least one current disorder according to DSM-III-R criteria. Women had a significantly higher probability of suffering from any psychiatric disorder than men. The most common disorders were insomnia, dysthymia, major depression and simple phobia. Nearly 40% of the diagnosed subjects had one or more comorbid disorders. Comorbidity was found to be higher among female subjects. Consistent with previous risk factor research, it was found that women had higher rates of mood, anxiety and sleep disorders than men. Good communication between parents and their offspring was found to be a protecting factor for all disorders.

Even at early stages of development, ADHD has high rates of comorbidity and a significant impact on school performance and family health.

When there are complaints of feeding problems in preschools, the psychological problems of children and their mothers should be taken into consideration during paediatric consultation, irrespective of gender or socioeconomic status.

Depression characteristics were investigated in 507 adolescents using a two-stage longitudinal study design. The three-year longitudinal study started when the girls and boys were 11 and 12 years, respectively. In the initial (screening) phase the Children's Depression Inventory (CDI) was used to select subjects for phase-II of the study in which the Children's Depression Rating Scale-Revised (CDRS-R) interview was used. The caseness definition of Major Depression (MD) and Dysthymia (D) was based on the DSM-III-R criteria. Pubertal development was assessed by Tanner's staging. Estimated prevalence of Major Depression in the female sample for each increasing year of age was 2.2%, 2.7% and 4.1%. In the male sample the prevalence for the three years was 0.9%, 0.3% and 0.6%. There was no relation to age. The estimated mean prevalence of Dysthymia was 1.4% in girls and 0.8% in boys. No association between pubertal development and depression was found. Longitudinal data support the notion of chronic depression in early adolescence.