child and adolescent

Birth – 18 years.

Our child and adolescent Blogs

Atypical antipsychotics no better than typicals for adolescents with psychosis, but atypicals may have fewer short-term side effects

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Schizophrenia is a serious neurodevelopmental disorder that often starts during adolescence. Current treatment guidelines (NICE, 2013) recommend atypical antipsychotics for adolescents with this condition, but this is based largely on studies of adults with the condition. The Cochrane Schizophrenia Group conducted this systematic review to synthesise the current evidence base for atypical antipsychotic medication in [read the full story…]

How can we best prevent suicide in young people? More questions than answers

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Listening to a World Health Organisation podcast recently I learnt that someone dies as a result of suicide every 40 seconds; this equates to a million suicides each year. The podcast contains a myriad of such stark statistics and the contributors’ highlight how it is well established that young people are often at risk, and [read the full story…]

Early orthodontic treatment may reduce incisal trauma in children with class II malocclusions

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This is the latest update of a Cochrane review looking at the treatment of class II malocclusion.  This is a common problem affecting about one in four of 12 year-olds in the UK.    The aim of the review was to assess the effects of orthodontic treatment for prominent upper front teeth (Class II malocclusion) when [read the full story…]

Expert review suggests that school-based depression and anxiety prevention programmes are effective in the short term

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Broadbent Amy
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It is estimated that 20% of children up to the age of 18 will have suffered an emotional disorder of depression or anxiety (Costello et al., 2003). These two mental health conditions commonly occur together and can significantly influence daily functioning, relationships and education in this age group. Effective and evidence-based psychological treatments have been [read the full story…]

Treating antenatal depression could prevent offspring adult depression

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Nikki Newhouse
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Depression in late adolescence is a major public health concern, not least because it is strongly predictive of persistent, adult depression, which can have a severe effect on socioemotional functioning, education and employment. Increasingly, depression research is turning its attention to the matter of prevention of depression rather than exclusively focusing on treatment options and [read the full story…]

Cohort study links early exposure to intimate partner violence with poor mental health outcomes, but longer follow-up is needed

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Negative childhood experiences have always been a big topic in psychology and psychiatry, as they tend to be associated with poor mental health outcomes in later life. Intimate partner violence (IPV) harms not only the adults directly involved in it, but also the children – witnessing IPV as a child is a known risk factor [read the full story…]

Can MRI scanning help diagnose autism in infants?

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Andrew Watson
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After recent posts delving off into dark woodlands of some methodologically challenging brain imaging studies, we are coming back to a more simple idea: repeatedly scanning the same people from before they develop a disorder through to receiving a diagnosis.  What is different about this study is that it was done with infants aged 6-36 [read the full story…]

New Cochrane review examines the effectiveness of smoking cessation strategies in young people

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Andrew Jones
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Worldwide, around 100,000 young people take up smoking every day and approximately 1 in 4 young people in the UK and USA smoke regularly. Although these figures have been falling over the last 20 years, they still represent a major public health concern. Evidence suggests that addiction to nicotine develops quickly in adolescence, and most [read the full story…]

Trauma exposure is pervasive among US youths

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Kate McLaughlin
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The media is filled with stories about traumatised children and adolescents, such as the school shootings at Sandy Hook and Columbine. However, a range of more common traumatic events, such as accidents and caregiver maltreatment, receive less attention. We sought to understand how common traumatic experiences are in the lives of U.S. youths by conducting a study examining trauma [read the full story…]

Review reiterates that certain features of dental neglect are clearly identifiable

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Sadly child mistreatment, including abuse and neglect are a reality in society.  In the UK, dental neglect has been defined as,  ‘‘the persistent failure to meet a child’s basic oral health needs, likely to result in the serious impairment of a child’s oral or general health and development’’.  The aim of this review was to identify [read the full story…]