Findings highlight the need to consider the ecological context of pediatric cancer, particularly the impact of sociodemographic disadvantage on stress and distress in this population.

Background Young children with sickle cell disease (SCD) are at risk for cognitive delay. In addition to biologic risk factors associated with SCD, environmental factors contribute to cognitive dysfunction within this cohort. Methods We completed a single arm, prospective cohort study. Children with SCD between the ages of 3–36 months and their caregivers were followed between October 2010 and December 2013. The aim was to describe the role of a home visitation model, the home environment, and socioeconomic status in the development of young children with SCD. Primary outcome measures were the Bayley Scales of Infant and Toddler Development, Third Edition (BSID-III) and the Home Observation for Measurement of the Environment (HOME). We hypothesized that the home visitation model, Parents as Teachers® (PAT), would encourage positive parent-child interactions and improve cognitive outcomes. Results Thirty-five participants had at least two PAT visits and BSID-III assessments. Mean scores within all five subtests of the BSID-III improved between enrollment and exit, with significant changes within cognitive (p = 0.016) and expressive language domains (p = 0.002). Multivariate modeling found the HOME score associated with the exit results of the cognitive domain. Conclusion We report longitudinal results of the first home visitation program within the early childhood SCD population and show significant improvement in cognitive and expressive language development. Additionally, home environment was a significant predictor of cognitive development. Randomized controlled trials to test the impact of interventions targeting the home environment are warranted for this vulnerable population.

The results provide new evidence for the associations between cognitive function and coping, and the association of both of these processes with depressive symptoms in children with SCD. Findings provide potential implications for clinical practice, including interventions to improve children's cognitive functioning to attenuate depressive symptoms.

Brief stress management interventions targeting coping and executive function may benefit college students at risk for psychopathology.

Over 4 million children in the United States suffer from chronic health conditions, including cancer, sickle cell disease, and diabetes. Because of major advances in the early identification and treatment of these conditions, survival rates for these children continue to rise, and the majority now lives into adulthood. However, increases in survival have come with costs related to long-term effects of disease processes and treatments. Foremost among these consequences is impairment in brain development and neurocognitive function that may affect a substantial portion of children with chronic health conditions and follow many into adulthood. Impaired cognitive function may contribute to impairment in educational and occupational attainment, mental health, and quality of life for children with chronic conditions. Despite the significance and scope of this problem, advances in the identification and understanding of neurocognitive problems and the delivery of effective clinical care have been hindered in part because research has been "siloed"-conducted on each chronic condition in isolation. This review examines, for the first time, neurocognitive problems in a selected set of 6 chronic pediatric health conditions-leukemia, brain tumors, sickle cell disease, congenital heart disease, Type 1 diabetes, and traumatic brain injury-to define the magnitude of the problem and identify directions for future research and clinical care. Psychologists from many areas of specialization, including pediatric psychology, educational and school psychology, neuropsychology, behavioral medicine, and adult primary care, are uniquely positioned to contribute to every phase of this work, including research, identification, and intervention. (PsycINFO Database Record