We investigated the congruent and criterion validity of the Aberrant Behavior Checklist (ABC) in a clinical sample of toddlers seen over 1 year in Turkey. All consecutive patients (N=93), 14-43 months old (mean, 30.6 mos.), in a child psychiatry outpatient clinic were included. The ABC, Autism Behavior Checklist (AuBC), and Child Behavior Checklist 2/3 (CBCL) were completed by the children's parents. Internal consistency for ABC subscales was moderate to high. The total ABC score, which is interdependent with subscales (e.g., Irritability, Social Withdrawal) of the ABC, was significantly correlated with the CBCL-total (r= .73) and AuBC-total (r= .71) scores. Subscales of the ABC revealed significant differences between diagnostic groups. ABC Total, and the Irritability and Hyperactivity subscale scores, were significantly higher in children with externalizing disorders; the Lethargy/Social Withdrawal and Stereotypic Behavior subscale scores were significantly higher in toddlers with autism. The ABC appears to be capable of discriminating several syndromes, such as disruptive behavior disorders and autism in early childhood.

ObjectiveWe aimed to determine distribution and diversities of psychiatric comorbidities in children and adolescents with attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) in terms of age groups, sex, and ADHD subtype.Materials and methodsThe sample included 6–18 year old children and adolescents from Turkey (N=108; 83 boys, 25 girls) diagnosed with ADHD. All comorbid diagnoses were determined based on the Kiddie Schedule for Affective Disorders and Schizophrenia for School-Age Children-Present and Lifetime Version assessment.Results96.3% of the cases were found to have at least one psychiatric comorbid diagnosis. The most frequent psychiatric comorbid disorder was oppositional defiant disorder (69.4%) followed by anxiety disorders (49%) and elimination disorders (27.8%). Disruptive behavior disorders were more common in ADHD-combined type. Depression and anxiety disorders were more common in girls. Separation anxiety disorder and elimination disorder were more common in children, whereas depression, bipolar disorder, obsessive–compulsive disorder, and social phobia were more common in the adolescents.ConclusionAccording to our results, when a diagnostic tool was used to assess the presence of comorbid psychiatric disorders in children and adolescents diagnosed with ADHD, almost all cases had at least one comorbid diagnosis. Therefore, especially in the clinical sample, ADHD cases should not be solely interpreted with ADHD symptom domains, instead they should be investigated properly in terms of accompanying psychiatric disorders.

Between having mental retardation (MR) and typically growing (TG) sexually abused children, we aimed to explore the differential features in terms of sexual abuse history and psychiatric consequences. The 7-16 year-old age and sex matched children (MR, n:20; TG, n:20) who were sexually abused between January 2005 and February 2009 were included. Mental capacity was assessed with the Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children-Revised (WISC-R). A comprehensive physical examination and where indicated anal-vaginal examination were conducted by a forensic medicine specialist in all children. A child psychiatry specialist investigated the abuse history. Compared to the TG group, significantly more children in the MR group were exposed to vaginal penetration, had more positive signs during anal-vaginal examination, and more were abused by relatives. Among all children who were sexually abused, compared to the typically growing children, children with MR were abused in more violent ways and more by their relatives.

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This study investigated the characteristics of abuse suffered by children, the dimensions of the psychiatric effects associated with abuse, and the factors affecting these. One thousand two cases aged under 18, exposed to sexual abuse, and referred over a 7-year period were assessed. Girls represented 80.8% of cases, and the numbers rose with age. The aggressors were all male, and 88.2% were known to their victim. Approximately half the children were exposed to sexual abuse involving penetration. Psychological pathology was identified in 62.1%. Female gender, the presence of penetration, physical violence, and incest significantly increased the development of psychological pathology. Levels of awareness in people close to and trusted by the child must be raised to minimize the adverse effects of trauma in the long term, preventive measures must be taken, and medical and social support units from which victims can receive assistance need to be established.

Increased rates of moderate hyperactivity as well as conduct and oppositional defiant symptoms in HS reported by the parents might reflect a negative impact on overall neurobehavioural health. The teachers' scores yielded no significant results among HS and controls. This may be caused by the limitation due to shared method variance. The negative effect of crowded classes on teachers' evaluations must be also taken into consideration. After exclusion of a diagnosis of ADHD in children presenting with hyperactivity and inattention, children with habitual snoring with prominent scores of behavioural measures should be considered as candidates for further assessment by a sleep specialist.

Aim:The aim of the present study was to investigate the differences in the antioxidant-oxidant balance (AO-OB) between schizophrenic patients and healthy individuals and to explore the relationship of AO-OB with illness subtypes and symptom profiles.Methods: After a 15-day drug-free period, schizophrenia patients (n = 50) in a clinical sample, and age-and sex-matched healthy subjects (n = 49) were enrolled. Total antioxidant potentials (TAOP) and total peroxide levels (TPEROX) of all participants were measured and the oxidative stress index (OSI) was calculated. The assessment included structured measurements, including the Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale (PANSS), and the Brief Psychiatric Rating Scale (BPRS).Results: TAOP had a significant positive correlation with age at onset of schizophrenia (P = 0.013), a negative correlation with the PANSS negative subscale scores (P = 0.008), a negative correlation with the PANSS total scores (P < 0.001), and a significant negative correlation with BPRS scores (P = 0.001). OSI had a significant negative correlation with age at onset (P = 0.046) and a significant positive correlation with PANSS negative subscale (P = 0.015). A multiple regression model indicated a significant linear combination of age, gender, duration of illness, subtype of schizophrenia, and PANSS scores, in which only the subtype of schizophrenia made a statistically significant contribution to predicting mean OSI (F[5,35] = 2.44, P = 0.04). Conclusion: Several parameters in the pathogenesisof schizophrenia, such as age of onset, level of negative symptoms, and subtype of illness, but not the presence of the illness itself, are associated with the level of oxidative stress.

Background The symptoms of obsessive−compulsive disorder (OCD) are highly heterogeneous and it is unclear what is the optimal way to conceptualize this heterogeneity. This study aimed to establish a comprehensive symptom structure model of OCD across the lifespan using factor and network analytic techniques. Methods A large multinational cohort of well-characterized children, adolescents, and adults diagnosed with OCD (N = 1366) participated in the study. All completed the Dimensional Yale-Brown Obsessive−Compulsive Scale, which contains an expanded checklist of 87 distinct OCD symptoms. Exploratory and confirmatory factor analysis were used to outline empirically supported symptom dimensions, and interconnections among the resulting dimensions were established using network analysis. Associations between dimensions and sociodemographic and clinical variables were explored using structural equation modeling (SEM). Results Thirteen first-order symptom dimensions emerged that could be parsimoniously reduced to eight broad dimensions, which were valid across the lifespan: Disturbing Thoughts, Incompleteness, Contamination, Hoarding, Transformation, Body Focus, Superstition, and Loss/Separation. A general OCD factor could be included in the final factor model without a significant decline in model fit according to most fit indices. Network analysis showed that Incompleteness and Disturbing Thoughts were most central (i.e. had most unique interconnections with other dimensions). SEM showed that the eight broad dimensions were differentially related to sociodemographic and clinical variables. Conclusions Future research will need to establish if this expanded hierarchical and multidimensional model can help improve our understanding of the etiology, neurobiology and treatment of OCD.