Increased Prevalence of Psychiatric Disorders in Children with RASopathies: Comparing NF1, Noonan Syndrome Spectrum Disorder, and the General Population
Abstract
1. Introduction
2. Materials and Methods
2.1. Participants
2.2. Cognition
2.3. Psychiatric Disorders
2.4. Statistical Analysis
Psychiatric Diagnoses Analysis
3. Results
3.1. Rates of Psychiatric Disorders in NF1
3.2. Rates of Psychiatric Disorders in NSSD
3.3. Influence of Cognition on the Prevalence of Psychiatric Disorders
3.4. Comparison Between NF1 and NSSD Psychiatric Diagnoses
3.5. Comparing Psychiatric Prevalence in NF1 and NSSD Relative to the General Children’s Population
4. Discussion
4.1. ADHD
4.2. Anxiety Disorders
4.3. Sleep Disorders
4.4. Behavioral Disorders, Elimination Disorders, OCD, Tic Disorders, and PTSD
4.5. Limitations
5. Conclusions
Supplementary Materials
Author Contributions
Funding
Institutional Review Board Statement
Informed Consent Statement
Data Availability Statement
Acknowledgments
Conflicts of Interest
References
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NF1 | NSSD | Overall | p Values (Chi-Square or t-Test or Mann–Whitney U Test) | |
---|---|---|---|---|
N | 29 | 94 | 123 | NF1: NSSD |
Age (Mean (SD)) | 8.97 (2.27) | 9.83 (2.99) | 9.62 (2.85) | 0.278 |
Sex | ||||
Female (%) | 14 (48.3%) | 48 (51.1%) | 62 (50.4%) | 0.960 |
Male (%) | 15 (51.7%) | 46 (48.9%) | 61 (49.6%) | |
FSIQ (Mean (SD)) * | 98.8 (12.2) | 97.1 (13.5) | 97.5 (13.2%) | 0.535 |
Gene Variants (%) | ||||
NF1 | 26 (89.65%) | |||
NF1-Other | 3 (10.34%) | |||
PTPN11 | 66 (70.2%) | |||
SOS1 | 8 (6.5%) | |||
NSSD-Other | 20 (21.27%) | |||
Medication status (%) | ||||
Any psychoactive medication | 12 (41.4%) | 18 (19.1%) | 30 (24.4%) | |
Stimulants | 12 (41.4%) | 10 (10.6%) | 22 (17.9%) | |
SSRI | 2 (6.9%) | 2 (2.1%) | 4 (3.3%) | |
Atomoxetine | 0 (0%) | 3 (3.2%) | 3 (2.4%) | |
Melatonin | 0 (0%) | 3 (3.2%) | 3 (2.4%) | |
Clonidine | 1 (3.4%) | 1 (1.1%) | 2 (1.6%) | |
Benzodiazepines | 0 (0%) | 1 (1.1%) | 1 (0.8%) | |
Buspirone | 0 (0%) | 1 (1.1%) | 1 (0.8%) | |
Gabapentin | 1 (3.4%) | 0 (0%) | 1 (0.8%) | |
Guanfacine | 0 (0%) | 1 (1.1%) | 1 (0.8%) | |
Remeron | 0 (0%) | 1 (1.1%) | 1 (0.8%) |
Psychiatric Diagnosis | NF1 (n/N) | NSSD (n/N) | Children’s Population * | Fisher’s Test (NF1 vs. NSSD) | Binomial Test (NF1 vs. Pop) | Binomial Test (NSSD vs. Pop) |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Any Psychiatric Disorder | 23/29 (79.3%) | 72/94 (76.6%) | 13% | p = 1.000 | p < 0.001 | p < 0.001 |
ADHD | 21/29 (72.4%) | 48/94 (51.1%) | 11.4% | p = 0.544 | p < 0.001 | p < 0.001 |
Anxiety Disorders | 11/29 (37.9%) | 41/94 (43.6%) | 10% | p = 1.000 | p = 0.001 | p < 0.001 |
Mood Disorders | 1/29 (3.4%) | 5/94 (5.3%) | 4% | p = 1.000 | p = 1.000 | p = 1.000 |
Behavioral Disorders | 9/29 (31.0%) | 21/94 (22.3%) | 7% | p = 1.000 | p = 0.002 | p < 0.001 |
Sleep Disorders | 7/29 (24.1%) | 22/94 (23.4%) | 35% | p = 1.000 | p = 1.000 | p = 0.313 |
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Serur, Y.; Russo, O.; McGhee, C.A.; Green, T. Increased Prevalence of Psychiatric Disorders in Children with RASopathies: Comparing NF1, Noonan Syndrome Spectrum Disorder, and the General Population. Genes 2025, 16, 843. https://doi.org/10.3390/genes16070843
Serur Y, Russo O, McGhee CA, Green T. Increased Prevalence of Psychiatric Disorders in Children with RASopathies: Comparing NF1, Noonan Syndrome Spectrum Disorder, and the General Population. Genes. 2025; 16(7):843. https://doi.org/10.3390/genes16070843
Chicago/Turabian StyleSerur, Yaffa, Odeya Russo, Chloe Alexa McGhee, and Tamar Green. 2025. "Increased Prevalence of Psychiatric Disorders in Children with RASopathies: Comparing NF1, Noonan Syndrome Spectrum Disorder, and the General Population" Genes 16, no. 7: 843. https://doi.org/10.3390/genes16070843
APA StyleSerur, Y., Russo, O., McGhee, C. A., & Green, T. (2025). Increased Prevalence of Psychiatric Disorders in Children with RASopathies: Comparing NF1, Noonan Syndrome Spectrum Disorder, and the General Population. Genes, 16(7), 843. https://doi.org/10.3390/genes16070843