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Children
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Precision Treatment and Medication Strategies for Childhood Mental Illness
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Precision Treatment and Medication Strategies for Childhood Mental Illness

A special issue of Children (ISSN 2227-9067). This special issue belongs to the section "Pediatric Mental Health".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (15 February 2026) | Viewed by 1949

Special Issue Editors

Dr. Ana Filipa Beato

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
HEI-Lab, Lusófona University, 1749-024 Lisboa, Portugal
Interests: anxiety; parenting; neurodevelopment; third-wave CBT therapies; autism spectrum disorders; psychiatry
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Dr. Stephanie Alves

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
HEI-Lab, Lusófona University, 1749-024 Lisboa, Portugal
Interests: clinical and health psychology; community psychology
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Childhood mental illnesses are increasingly recognized as complex, heterogeneous conditions that require tailored therapeutic approaches. Advances in neuroscience, genetics, pharmacology, and digital health have opened new avenues for precision medicine, allowing for interventions that are more effective, timely, and aligned with individual developmental needs. This Special Issue invites original research, reviews, and clinical reports that explore innovative strategies in the assessment, diagnosis, and personalized treatment of mental health conditions in children and adolescents.

Topics of interest include, but are not limited to, biomarkers and genetic predictors of treatment response, individualized pharmacological regimens, integration of neuroimaging and digital phenotyping, stratified care models, and ethical considerations in precision psychiatry for youth. Contributions that address comorbidities, early intervention, and treatment adherence in diverse populations are particularly welcome.

By gathering multidisciplinary perspectives, this Special Issue aims to advance evidence-based, child-centered mental health care, aligned with current trends in pediatric precision medicine.

Dr. Ana Filipa Beato
Dr. Stephanie Alves
Guest Editors

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 250 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for assessment.

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. Children 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 2400 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

  • precision treatment
  • child and adolescent mental health
  • personalized treatment
  • psychopharmacology
  • biomarkers and treatment response

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Further information on MDPI's Special Issue policies can be found here.

Published Papers (2 papers)

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Research

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19 pages, 526 KB  
Article
Work–Family Conflict, Parental Mental Health, and Children’s Emotional and Behavioral Difficulties
by Vitória Dias, Sara Albuquerque, Ana Beato and Stephanie Alves
Children 2026, 13(2), 289; https://doi.org/10.3390/children13020289 - 19 Feb 2026
Viewed by 699
Abstract
Background/Objectives: Work–family conflict (WFC) is a common stressor for working parents and has been associated with poorer child adjustment. However, the mechanisms linking WFC to young children’s emotional and behavioral difficulties remain insufficiently understood. This study examined whether parental mental health mediates the [...] Read more.
Background/Objectives: Work–family conflict (WFC) is a common stressor for working parents and has been associated with poorer child adjustment. However, the mechanisms linking WFC to young children’s emotional and behavioral difficulties remain insufficiently understood. This study examined whether parental mental health mediates the association between WFC and children’s emotional and behavioral difficulties in early childhood. Methods: This quantitative cross-sectional study was conducted in Portugal with 313 parents of children aged 18–72 months. Parents completed validated self-report measures of WFC, parental stress, depressive symptoms, parental self-efficacy, and children’s emotional and behavioral difficulties. Mediation and moderated mediation analyses were performed, testing children’s age (toddlers vs. preschool-aged) as a moderator. Results: Higher WFC was associated with greater emotional and behavioral difficulties in children (parents reported). This association was fully mediated by parental stress and depressive symptoms, whereas parental self-efficacy did not show a significant mediating effect. The indirect pathways were consistent across children’s age groups. Conclusions: The findings indicate that WFC may affect young children’s adjustment, primarily through its impact on parental psychological distress. Supporting parental mental health and reducing WFC may be key targets for early prevention and intervention. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Precision Treatment and Medication Strategies for Childhood Mental Illness)
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Review

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22 pages, 1248 KB  
Review
Biological Risk Factors for Suicidal Behavior in Children and Adolescents: A Narrative Review
by Martin Vatrál, Juraj Jurík, Barbora Katrenčíková, Jana Muchová, Zdeňka Ďuračková and Jana Trebatická
Children 2026, 13(3), 356; https://doi.org/10.3390/children13030356 - 28 Feb 2026
Viewed by 889
Abstract
Suicidal behavior in children and adolescents is a major global public health issue, and suicide is one of the leading causes of death in this age group. While psychosocial determinants of suicidality are well established, understanding its biological risk factors is crucial for [...] Read more.
Suicidal behavior in children and adolescents is a major global public health issue, and suicide is one of the leading causes of death in this age group. While psychosocial determinants of suicidality are well established, understanding its biological risk factors is crucial for targeted prevention and treatment. This review presents a narrative synthesis of recent literature examining current evidence on the biological mechanisms that contribute to youth suicidality. Genetic liability plays a substantial role, often interacting with environmental stressors. Key neurobiological factors include dysfunction of the serotonin system and impaired neuroplasticity, characterized by a glutamate–gamma-aminobutyric acid imbalance and reduced brain-derived neurotrophic factor. Psychosocial stress appears linked to these changes through several pathways, including dysregulation of the hypothalamic–pituitary–adrenal axis, chronic low-grade inflammation, oxidative stress, and activation of the kynurenine pathway. Neurodevelopmental conditions like autism spectrum disorders and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, as well as sleep disturbances, may further increase risk. While therapeutic agents such as ketamine and lithium target these neurobiological systems, evidence for their anti-suicidal efficacy in youth remains limited, with only a small number of randomized controlled trials conducted in pediatric populations. Biological research offers valuable insights, but the use of varied study methods and a lack of longitudinal data complicate its translation into clinical practice. Future studies should employ integrative, developmentally informed models to elucidate causal mechanisms and inform more effective interventions. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Precision Treatment and Medication Strategies for Childhood Mental Illness)
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