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Brain Sciences
Special Issues
Advances in Psychopharmacology in Neurodevelopmental Disorders (NDDs)
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Advances in Psychopharmacology in Neurodevelopmental Disorders (NDDs)

A special issue of Brain Sciences (ISSN 2076-3425). This special issue belongs to the section "Neuropharmacology and Neuropathology".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 31 December 2025 | Viewed by 589

Special Issue Editor

Prof. Dr. Shoumitro Deb

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Brain Sciences, Faculty of Medicine, Imperial College London, Hammersmith Campus, Du Cane Rd., London W12 0NN, UK
Interests: neuropsychiatry; psychopharmacology; neurodevelopmental disorders; traumatic brain injury
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

There has been a recent flurry of research on novel pharmacological interventions for autism spectrum disorder (ASD). There has also been a heightened rate of pharmacological interventions for attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). At the same time, there is a long-standing concern regarding the potential for overuse of pharmacological interventions for neurodevelopmental disorders (NDD), particularly the off-label use of mental health medicines primarily for behaviours of concern in the absence of a mental illness. Much research has been carried out in the last three decades to understand these issues and develop effective interventions, but a lot remains unknown as to why good quality translational research is urgently needed. We want to draw together recent advances in research addressing psychopharmacology in NDDs in this special issue of Brain Sciences. We are inviting papers related to any aspect of psychopharmacology in NDD. Although, not an exhaustive list but some examples of types of papers that could be submitted include (a) original articles, drug trials, reviews, systematic reviews/meta-analysis, (b) epidemiological studies, (c) genetics, neuroimaging, biomarkers or any other laboratory-based studies with clinical implications, (d) qualitative studies involving people with NDDs and their caregivers, (e) assessment including rating scales, (f) training issues, and (g) quality of life.

Prof. Dr. Shoumitro Deb
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Brain Sciences is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2200 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • neurodevelopmental disorders
  • psychopharmacology
  • research
  • recent advances
  • mental health medicine

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Published Papers (1 paper)

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Research

14 pages, 1322 KiB  
Article
Examination of Psychotropic Medication Use Following Outpatient Behavioral Assessment and Treatment
by Maria G. Valdovinos, Melissa Trites and Janelle Ausenhus
Brain Sci. 2025, 15(5), 513; https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci15050513 - 17 May 2025
Viewed by 409
Abstract
Background/Objectives: Psychotropic medications are often prescribed to treat challenging behavior in children with neurodevelopmental disorders. This study examined patterns of psychotropic medication use following outpatient behavioral assessment and treatment in children ages 2–16 years. Methods: Medication use at the time of behavioral assessments, [...] Read more.
Background/Objectives: Psychotropic medications are often prescribed to treat challenging behavior in children with neurodevelopmental disorders. This study examined patterns of psychotropic medication use following outpatient behavioral assessment and treatment in children ages 2–16 years. Methods: Medication use at the time of behavioral assessments, six months after the assessment, and a later follow-up time point (mean 25 months following the six-month time point, range 1 month to 41 months) were evaluated via a chart review. Alterations in psychotropic medication use were grouped into eight categories according to the type of medication change experienced. Care providers also completed a social validity survey rating their satisfaction with the assessment and interventions developed for their child. Results: This retrospective study revealed that children in this sample were more likely to experience starting a new medication and increases in the dose of psychotropic medication as time passed. Children were also less likely to remain on the same regimen of psychotropic medication as when they were first seen in the clinic. Additionally, although caregivers generally rated their experiences and outcomes with the behavioral clinic as favorable, additions and increases to psychotropic medication regimens still occurred. Conclusions: These findings are consistent with other reports of continued and increased prescribing of psychotropic medication across time in children with neurodevelopmental disorders, however, the results must be interpreted with caution given the small sample size which limits generalizability of these findings. Additionally, the lack of follow-up with the patients in this sample made it difficult to correlate changes in challenging behavior with psychotropic medication prescribing. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Psychopharmacology in Neurodevelopmental Disorders (NDDs))
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