Special Issue "Recent Advances in Child and Adolescent Psychiatry"

A special issue of Children (ISSN 2227-9067). This special issue belongs to the section "Child Neurology".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 20 October 2021.

Special Issue Editor

Dr. Matteo Alessio Chiappedi
E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Developmental Psychopathology Research Unit, IRCCS Mondino Foundation, Pavia, Italy
Interests: child and adolescent neuropsychiatry; eating disorders; psychodynamic psychotherapy treatments and outcomes
Special Issues and Collections in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Psychiatric disorders in children and adolescents are relevant both in terms of their prevalence (they are roughly estimated to affect about 20% of school-aged children and adolescents) and of their impact on the quality of life of the child/adolescent and their family, but also on the society as a whole.

Disorders affecting children and adolescents are increasingly seen as having highly specific features, and, therefore, require an equally specific approach despite the coexisting need to integrate contributions from other professions (e.g., pediatricians, psychiatrists, psychologists, and therapists of different sorts). However, the available data are still insufficient, especially for treatment options and too often therapeutic choices are still made based on studies conducted in adults. Even more important, the existence itself of some disorders is questioned especially outside the scientific field (e.g., ADHD).

This Special Issue will provide cutting edge data on all aspects of child and adolescent psychiatry, including etiopatogenesis, clinical characteristics and diagnosis, medical and neurological comorbidities (and psychiatric comorbidities of medical and neurological disorders), impact on patients/families/society (including school and other social groups), prognosis, and treatment options of the different disorders.

Dr. Matteo Alessio Chiappedi
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 papers will be 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. 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 1600 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

  • Autism spectrum disorders 
  • ADHD 
  • Eating disorders 
  • Anxiety 
  • Mood disorders 
  • Psychotic disorders 
  • Psychosomatic disorders 
  • Post-traumatic stress disorder

Published Papers (5 papers)

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Research

Article
Ten Years (2011–2021) of the Italian Lombardy ADHD Register for the Diagnosis and Treatment of Children and Adolescents with ADHD
Children 2021, 8(7), 598; https://doi.org/10.3390/children8070598 - 15 Jul 2021
Viewed by 432
Abstract
Background: The purpose of this article is to update the diagnostic assessment, therapeutic approach, and 12–18 month follow-up of patients added to the Italian Lombardy Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) Register. Methods: Medical records of patients added to the Registry from 2011 to [...] Read more.
Background: The purpose of this article is to update the diagnostic assessment, therapeutic approach, and 12–18 month follow-up of patients added to the Italian Lombardy Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) Register. Methods: Medical records of patients added to the Registry from 2011 to 2021 were analysed. Results: 4091 of 5934 patients met the criteria for a diagnosis of ADHD, and 20.3% of them presented a familiarity with the disorder. A total of 2879 children (70.4%) had at least one comorbidity disorder, in prevalence a learning disorder (39%). Nearly all (95.9%) received at least one psychological prescription, 17.9% of them almost one pharmacological treatment, and 15.6% a combination of both. Values of ≥5 of the Clinical Global Impression—Severity scale (CGI-S) are more commonly presented by patients with a pharmacological prescription than with a psychological treatment (p < 0.0001). A significant improvement was reported in half of the patients followed after 1 year, with Clinical Global Impression—Improvement scale (CGI-I) ≤ 3. In all, 233 of 4091 are 18-year-old patients. Conclusions: A ten-year systematic monitoring of models of care was a fruitful shared and collaborative initiative in order to promote significant improvement in clinical practice, providing effective and continuous quality of care. The unique experience reported here should spread. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Recent Advances in Child and Adolescent Psychiatry)
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Article
Reading Skills of Children with Dyslexia Improved Less Than Expected during the COVID-19 Lockdown in Italy
Children 2021, 8(7), 560; https://doi.org/10.3390/children8070560 - 29 Jun 2021
Viewed by 488
Abstract
Following school closures due to the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic, for some months, children received only distance learning. The effects of this approach, however, are not clear for children with dyslexia. We conducted a cross-sectional comparison between children with and without dyslexia after the so-called [...] Read more.
Following school closures due to the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic, for some months, children received only distance learning. The effects of this approach, however, are not clear for children with dyslexia. We conducted a cross-sectional comparison between children with and without dyslexia after the so-called “lockdown” and a comparison between pre- and post-lockdown parameters in children with dyslexia. We recruited sixty-five children with dyslexia (dyslexia group, DG) from an outpatient facility in Pavia (Lombardy, Italy) and fifty-two children without specific learning disabilities as the control group (CG) from summer camps in the same province. We performed neuropsychological tests to explore reading skills and an ad hoc questionnaire to explore how parents and children had experienced the measures taken to reduce spreading of SARS-CoV-2 infection. Between 59 to 63% of children with dyslexia did not reach the average expected increase of reading skills. According to their parents, they also showed greater social isolation and fewer worries about the pandemic and the school’s closure. Our data indicate that children with dyslexia are at increased risk of consequences on their learning potential in case of school closure. They also seem to have a peculiar psychological experience of school closure. Specific interventions should therefore be provided to minimize the risk of negative effects on global development. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Recent Advances in Child and Adolescent Psychiatry)
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Article
The Child Behavior Checklist as a Screening Instrument for PTSD in Refugee Children
Children 2021, 8(6), 521; https://doi.org/10.3390/children8060521 - 18 Jun 2021
Viewed by 344
Abstract
Thousands of refugees who have entered Europe experienced threatening conditions, potentially leading to post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), which has to be detected and treated early to avoid chronic manifestation, especially in children. We aimed to evaluate and test suitable screening tools to [...] Read more.
Thousands of refugees who have entered Europe experienced threatening conditions, potentially leading to post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), which has to be detected and treated early to avoid chronic manifestation, especially in children. We aimed to evaluate and test suitable screening tools to detect PTSD in children. Syrian refugee children aged 4–14 years were examined using the PTSD-semi-structured interview, the Kinder-DIPS, and the Child Behavior Checklist (CBCL). The latter was evaluated as a potential screening tool for PTSD using (i) the CBCL-PTSD subscale and (ii) an alternative subscale consisting of a psychometrically guided selection of items with an appropriate correlation to PTSD and a sufficient prevalence (presence in more than 20% of the cases with PTSD). For both tools we calculated sensitivity, specificity, and a receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve. Depending on the sum score of the items, the 20-item CBCL-PTSD subscale as used in previous studies yielded a maximal sensitivity of 85% and specificity of 76%. The psychometrically guided item selection resulted in a sensitivity of 85% and a specificity of 83%. The areas under the ROC curves were the same for both tools (0.9). Both subscales may be suitable as screening instrument for PTSD in refugee children, as they reveal a high sensitivity and specificity. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Recent Advances in Child and Adolescent Psychiatry)
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Article
Online Videogames Use and Anxiety in Children during the COVID-19 Pandemic
Children 2021, 8(3), 205; https://doi.org/10.3390/children8030205 - 08 Mar 2021
Cited by 5 | Viewed by 1707
Abstract
Videogames use has constantly increased among children and adolescents, with uncertain consequences on their health. This study aimed to assess the prevalence of videogames use and addiction in a sample of Italian children during the COVID-19 pandemic and their association with anxiety symptoms. [...] Read more.
Videogames use has constantly increased among children and adolescents, with uncertain consequences on their health. This study aimed to assess the prevalence of videogames use and addiction in a sample of Italian children during the COVID-19 pandemic and their association with anxiety symptoms. One hundred and sixty-two children (M/F:78/84; age range: 8–10 years; average age 9.4 ± 0.7 years) completed the Videogame Addiction Scale for Children (VASC), the Test of Anxiety and Depression (TAD) and the Children’s Anxiety Meter—State (CAM-S). Demographic variables and data on the access to electronic tools and games preferences were also collected. Overall, 96.3% of the study participants stated to have access to one or more device. They reported a low risk of videogame addiction (VASC score (mean ± SD): 46.7 ± 15.4), a moderate level of trait anxiety (TAD score (mean ± SD): 135 ± 16.8) and a low state anxiety (CAM-S score (mean ± SD): 2.2 ± 2.1). Males reported to spend more time on videogames, to perceive higher self-control and to be more influenced by reinforcement mechanisms; females described higher levels of trait anxiety. In the regression analysis, state anxiety was a predictor of videogame use and addiction (p = 0.01). Further research is needed to confirm these data and to maximize the developmentally positive effects of videogames and preventing the negative consequences. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Recent Advances in Child and Adolescent Psychiatry)
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Article
The Role of Alexithymia in Social Withdrawal during Adolescence: A Case–Control Study
Children 2021, 8(2), 165; https://doi.org/10.3390/children8020165 - 22 Feb 2021
Viewed by 538
Abstract
Although social withdrawal is becoming increasingly common among adolescents, there is still no consensus on its definition from the diagnostic and psychopathological standpoints. So far, research has focused mainly on social withdrawal as a symptom of specific diagnostic categories, such as depression, social [...] Read more.
Although social withdrawal is becoming increasingly common among adolescents, there is still no consensus on its definition from the diagnostic and psychopathological standpoints. So far, research has focused mainly on social withdrawal as a symptom of specific diagnostic categories, such as depression, social phobia, or anxiety disorders, or in the setting of dependence or personality disorders. Few studies have dealt with social withdrawal in terms of its syndromic significance, also considering aspects of emotion control, such as alexithymia. The present case-control study aimed to further investigate the issue of social withdrawal, and try to clarify the part played by alexithymia in a sample of Italian adolescents diagnosed with psychological disorders (n = 80; Average Ageg = 15.2 years, SD = 1.49). Our patients with social withdrawal (cases) scored significantly higher than those without this type of behavior (controls) in every domain of alexithymia investigated, using the Toronto Alexithymia Scale (TAS-20) and with the scales in the Youth Self-Report (YSR) regarding internalizing problems, anxiety–depression, social problems, and total problems. Internalizing problems and total levels of alexithymia also emerged as predictors of social withdrawal. These variables may therefore precede and predispose adolescents to social withdrawal, while social problems may develop as a consequence of the latter. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Recent Advances in Child and Adolescent Psychiatry)
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