Clinical predictors of severe behavioural problems in people with intellectual disabilities referred to a specialist mental health service

Abstract

Associations between demographic and clinical variables and severe behavioural problems in people with intellectual disabilities were examined in a cross-sectional survey of 408 adults consecutively referred to a specialist mental health service. Severe behavioural problems were present in 136 (33.3%) of the sample. The demographic and clinical predictors of severe behavioural problems in this sample were identified by logistic regression. Age and gender were not associated with severe behavioural problems. The presence of severe ID independently predicted the presence of severe behavioural problems. Schizophrenia spectrum disorders and personality disorders independently predicted the presence of severe behavioural problems, whereas the presence of an anxiety disorder independently predicted their absence. There is an increasing evidence base of relationships between mental disorders and behavioural problems in people with ID although the pattern of these relationships remains unclear.

Family burden related to clinical and functional variables of people with intellectual disability with and without a mental disorder

“…Participants with ID-MD presented a high rate of affective, psychotic and behavioral disorders, as found in other studies on prevalence of mental disorders (Martínez-Leal et al, 2011;Maes et al, 2003;Hemmings, Tsakanikos, Underwood, Holt, & Bouras, 2008). We should stress that several differences emerged in the characteristics of these studies, although all the results are concordant.…”

“…The recently approved Spanish Dependency Law (BOE, 2006) considers caregivers' needs and tries to compensate for the time spent in the care of offspring or other dependents. Valuable initiatives would be the setting up of caregiver relief services (respite care), such as psychoeducation programs, mutual-help support groups, professional emotional and psychosocial support, as others have suggested (Cooper et al, 2007a;Hemmings, 2008). Interventions that address the reduction of the functional disability and symptoms of people with ID and ID-MD could also help to decrease the perceived family burden of the caregivers.…”

Psychotherapy case formulation for patients with aggressive behaviours in clinical settings: an adaptation of the Multimodal Functional Model

“…Another difficulty for the clinician is to conceptualise the client's aggressiveness in the absence of a framework to guide the assessment of aggression in a systematic and comprehensive manner. While there are instruments for assessing dangerousness in people with severe mental disorders (Hodgins et al, 2003;Micciolo et al, 2021), risk of recidivism in correctional settings (Desmarais et al, 2016;Olver et al, 2022), and severe behavioural disorders in people with intellectual disabilities or autism spectrum disorders (Hastings et al, 2021;Hemmings et al, 2008;Hill et al, 2014), these methods are not always adapted to the clientele seen in private office, outpatient clinics, and hospitals. Knowing when and how to assess aggressive behaviours is essential to avoid the negative consequences of not conducting an assessment or of conducting it hastily, and not planning interventions that address each of the possible causes of aggression and thus maximise the chances of therapeutic success.…”

Immunological parameters in assessing the risk of decompensation in children with mental retardation

“…пенсации, на протяжении которых клиническая картина заболевания усложняется, появляются коморбидные психические расстройства. О высокой частоте сопутствующих психических и поведенческих нарушений, осложняющих УО, подчеркивалось в ряде публикаций последних десятилетий [9][10][11]. В связи с большой распространенностью УО, особенностями ее динамики в детском и подростковом периоде, своевременное выявление пациентов с декомпенсированными тяжелыми состояниями, экзацербацией сопутствующих психических нарушений весьма актуально.…”