Dimensions of experienced gender and prospective self-injurious thoughts and behaviors in preadolescent children: A national study.

Objectives: Gender diverse youth face higher risk of engaging in self-injurious thoughts and behaviors (SITBs) compared to cisgender youth. Limitations in past research include a focus on older adolescents, an emphasis on specific gender identity labels that may not be inclusive of the range of youth gender experiences, and reliance on cross-sectional data. Thus, the current study prospectively evaluated dimensions of experienced gender in relation to first-onset SITBs among preadolescents.

The Resilient Youth Program: a promising skills-based online program for resiliency and stress management.

Background: Prevention programs that target resilience may help youth address mental health difficulties and promote well-being during public health crises.

Aims: To examine the preliminary efficacy of the (RYP).

Method: The RYP was delivered remotely from a US academic medical centre to youth in the community via a naturalistic pilot study.

Anxiety and Disruptive Behavior Symptoms and Disorders in Preschool-Age Offspring of Parents With and Without Bipolar Disorder: Associations With Parental Comorbidity.

Objective: We examined the relative contribution of parental bipolar disorder (BPD) and psychiatric comorbidities (disruptive behavior disorders [DBD] and anxiety disorders) in predicting psychiatric symptoms and disorders in 2-5-year-old offspring.

Methods: Participants were 60 families with a parent with BPD and 78 offspring and 70 comparison families in which neither parent had a mood disorder and 91 offspring. Parent and offspring diagnoses and symptoms were assessed using standardized diagnostic interviews and measures, with offspring assessors masked to parental diagnoses.

Reward-Related Neural Circuitry in Depressed and Anxious Adolescents: A Human Connectome Project.

Objective: Although depression and anxiety often have distinct etiologies, they frequently co-occur in adolescence. Recent initiatives have underscored the importance of developing new ways of classifying mental illness based on underlying neural dimensions that cut across traditional diagnostic boundaries. Accordingly, the aim of the study was to clarify reward-related neural circuitry that may characterize depressed-anxious youth.

Further Evidence that Subsyndromal Manifestations of Depression in Childhood Predict the Subsequent Development of Major Depression: A Replication Study in a 10 Year Longitudinally Assessed Sample.

Background: We have previously shown that subsyndromal scores on the Child Behavior Checklist (CBCL)-Anxiety/Depression (Anx/Dep) scale at baseline predicted the subsequent development of Major Depressive Disorder (MDD) in youth with ADHD. The present study aimed to replicate these findings in a separate, long-term, longitudinal sample of children at high- and low- risk for depression.

Methods: 219 children of parents with and without depression and/or anxiety, ages 2-25, were stratified into 3 groups: 1) children with familial risk for depression (by presence of parental MDD) plus subsyndromal scores on the CBCL-Anx/Dep scale, 2) children with familial risk for depression without subsyndromal scores, and 3) children with neither familial risk for depression nor subsyndromal scores.

Image acquisition and quality assurance in the Boston Adolescent Neuroimaging of Depression and Anxiety study.

The Connectomes Related to Human Diseases (CRHD) initiative was developed with the Human Connectome Project (HCP) to provide high-resolution, open-access, multi-modal MRI data to better understand the neural correlates of human disease. Here, we present an introduction to a CRHD project, the Boston Adolescent Neuroimaging of Depression and Anxiety (BANDA) study, which is collecting multimodal neuroimaging, clinical, and neuropsychological data from 225 adolescents (ages 14-17), 150 of whom are expected to have a diagnosis of depression and/or anxiety. Our transdiagnostic recruitment approach samples the full spectrum of depressed/anxious symptoms and their comorbidity, consistent with NIMH Research Domain Criteria (RDoC).

Very early family-based intervention for anxiety: two case studies with toddlers.

Anxiety disorders represent the most common category of psychiatric disorder in children and adolescents and contribute to distress, impairment and dysfunction. Anxiety disorders or their temperamental precursors are often evident in early childhood, and anxiety can impair functioning, even during preschool age and in toddlerhood. A growing number of investigators have shown that anxiety in preschoolers can be treated efficaciously using cognitive-behavioural therapy (CBT) administered either by training the parents to apply CBT strategies with their children or through direct intervention with parents and children.

Efficacy of Augmentation of Cognitive Behavior Therapy With Weight-Adjusted d-Cycloserine vs Placebo in Pediatric Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder: A Randomized Clinical Trial.

Importance: Cognitive behavior therapy (CBT) among youth with obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) is effective, but many patients remain symptomatic after intervention. d-cycloserine, a partial agonist at the N-methyl-d-aspartate receptor in the amygdala, has been associated with enhanced CBT outcome for OCD among adults but requires evaluation among youth.

Objectives: To examine the relative efficacy of weight-adjusted d-cycloserine (25 or 50 mg) vs placebo augmentation of CBT for youth with OCD and to assess if concomitant antidepressant medication moderated effects.

A latent class analysis of parental bipolar disorder: Examining associations with offspring psychopathology.

Bipolar disorder (BD) is highly heterogeneous, and course variations are associated with patient outcomes. This diagnostic complexity challenges identification of patients in greatest need of intervention. Additionally, course variations have implications for offspring risk.

Family functioning in the context of parental bipolar disorder: associations with offspring age, sex, and psychopathology.

Previous research has shown that families with a parent who has bipolar disorder (BD) may experience family functioning difficulties. However, the association between family functioning and psychopathology among offspring of parents with BD, and offspring characteristics that may moderate this association, remains poorly understood. This study examined the cross-sectional associations between family functioning (cohesion, expressiveness, and conflict) and psychopathology in 117 offspring (ages 5-18) of 75 parents with BD.

Efficacy of Interpretation Bias Modification in Depressed Adolescents and Young Adults.

This study evaluated the efficacy of a four-session Cognitive Bias Modification-Interpretation program for 45 depressed adolescents and young adults (14-21 years old; 12 males, 33 females; Beck Depressive Inventory, Second Edition ≥ 14) randomized to an active intervention condition (repeated exposure to positive outcomes of depression-relevant ambiguous scenarios; n=23) or a control condition (n=22). Both conditions experienced reductions on a Test of Interpretation Bias at post-treatment, with no significant between-group differences. When limited to those with negative bias at baseline, the intervention group showed greater improvement in interpretation bias at mid- and post-treatment.

Early risk factors for psychopathology in offspring of parents with bipolar disorder: the role of obstetric complications and maternal comorbid anxiety.

Objective: Offspring of parents with bipolar disorder (BD) are at increased risk for developing a range of psychiatric disorders. Although genetic factors clearly confer risk to offspring, environmental factors also play a role in increasing vulnerability. Such environmental factors may occur at the initial stages of development in the form of obstetric complications (OCs).

Psychopathology in adolescent offspring of parents with panic disorder, major depression, or both: a 10-year follow-up.

Objective: The authors examined the specificity and course of psychiatric disorders from early childhood through adolescence in offspring of parents with confirmed panic disorder and major depressive disorder.

Method: The authors examined rates of psychiatric disorders at 10-year-follow-up (mean age, 14 years) in four groups: offspring of referred parents with panic and depression (N=137), offspring of referred parents with panic without depression (N=26), offspring of referred parents with depression without panic (N=48), and offspring of nonreferred parents with neither disorder (N=80). Follow-up assessments relied on structured interviews with the adolescents and their mothers; diagnoses were rated present if endorsed by either.

A magnetic resonance spectroscopy study of the anterior cingulate cortex in youth with emotional dysregulation.

Background: The main aim of this study was to use proton Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopy (MRS) to identify brain biomarkers for emotional dysregulation in youth as measured by subscales of the Child Behavior Checklist (CBCL).

Methods: We measured glutamate (Glu) concentrations in the anterior cingulated cortex (ACC) of 37 pediatric subjects (aged 6-17 years) using high field (4.0 Tesla) proton Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopy (MRS).

Examining the association between stimulant treatment and cognitive outcomes across the life cycle of adults with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder: a controlled cross-sectional study.

Few studies have evaluated the effects of stimulants on cognition in adults with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). We evaluated the impact of stimulant treatment on neurocognition in a cross-sectional sample of adults with ADHD. Comparisons were made between adults with ADHD who received (n = 105) and who had never received pharmacotherapy (n = 116) and 146 controls.

Discriminant and concurrent validity of a simplified DSM-based structured diagnostic instrument for the assessment of autism spectrum disorders in youth and young adults.

Background: To evaluate the concurrent and discriminant validity of a brief DSM-based structured diagnostic interview for referred individuals with autism spectrum disorders (ASDs).

Methods: To test concurrent validity, we assessed the structured interview's agreement in 123 youth with the expert clinician assessment and the Social Responsiveness Scale (SRS). Discriminant validity was examined using 1563 clinic-referred youth.

Applying cognitive-behavioral therapy for anxiety to the younger child.

Cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT) protocols for anxiety disorders have been shown to have efficacy with older children and adolescents; however, only recently have investigators begun to adapt and pilot such interventions for younger children. This article reviews data suggesting that even very young children can benefit from CBT for anxiety, discusses some of the necessary developmental adaptations when working with children of preschool and early elementary school age, and reviews studies that have implemented CBT for anxiety disorders with youngsters in this age range. The authors conclude with recommendations for future directions for research in this area.

Brain biochemical effects of methylphenidate treatment using proton magnetic spectroscopy in youth with attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder: a controlled pilot study.

Introduction: This study conducted spectroscopic analyses using proton (1H) Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopy (at 4 Tesla) in a sample of adolescents with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD), before and after treatment with extended release methylphenidate (OROS MPH), as compared to a sample of healthy comparators.

Aims: The main aim of this study is to use 1H MRS to measure differences in brain biochemistry between adolescents with and without ADHD, and to assess changes in cerebral biochemistry, before and after stimulant treatment in ADHD youth.

Results: Subjects with ADHD were medically healthy adolescents treated in an open label fashion with OROS MPH (mean dose: 54 mg/day; 0.

Cognitive development in adults with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder: a controlled study in medication-naive adults across the adult life cycle.

Objective: This study evaluated the association between attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and psychometrically defined cognitive variables across the adult life span, using data from a large controlled study of adults with and without ADHD.

Method: Comparisons were made between 2 groups of adults: participants with DSM-IV-diagnosed ADHD who had never received pharmacotherapy for their ADHD (n = 116) and 146 control participants. Subjects received a battery assessing IQ, neuropsychological measures, and academic testing.

Impact of executive function deficits in youth with bipolar I disorder: a controlled study.

Although psychometrically-defined executive function deficits (EFDs) and ecologically valid functional outcomes have been documented among youth with bipolar I (BP-I) disorder, little is known about their association. We hypothesized that EFDs would be associated with significant ecologically valid impairments beyond those predicted by having BP-I disorder. Youth with BP-I disorder were ascertained from psychiatric clinics and community sources.

A preliminary study of D-cycloserine augmentation of cognitive-behavioral therapy in pediatric obsessive-compulsive disorder.

Background: Research on the neural circuitry underlying fear extinction has led to the examination of D-cycloserine (DCS), a partial agonist at the N-methyl-D-aspartate receptor in the amygdala, as a method to enhance exposure therapy outcome. Preliminary results have supported the use of DCS to augment exposure therapy in adult anxiety disorders; however, no data have been reported in any childhood anxiety disorder. Thus, we sought to preliminarily examine whether weight-adjusted DCS doses (25 or 50 mg) enhanced the overall efficacy of cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT) for pediatric obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD).

Cognitive behavioral therapy for 4- to 7-year-old children with anxiety disorders: a randomized clinical trial.

Objective: To examine the efficacy of a developmentally appropriate parent-child cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) protocol for anxiety disorders in children ages 4-7 years.

Design: Randomized wait-list controlled trial. Conduct: Sixty-four children (53% female, mean age 5.

Child behavior checklist clinical scales discriminate referred youth with autism spectrum disorder: a preliminary study.

Objective: To evaluate the properties of clinical scales of the Child Behavior Checklist in discriminating referred children with autism spectrum disorders (ASDs) (autistic disorder, Asperger's disorder, and pervasive developmental disorder not otherwise specified) from psychiatrically referred children without ASDs.

Method: Comparisons were made between children with ASDs (n = 65) with intelligence quotient >70 and children without ASDs (N = 83) on the clinical scales of the Child Behavior Checklist. Stepwise logistic regression was used to identify those scales that best predicted ASDs when compared with the non-ASD comparison group.

The heavy burden of psychiatric comorbidity in youth with autism spectrum disorders: a large comparative study of a psychiatrically referred population.

The objective of the study was to systematically examine patterns of psychiatric comorbidity in referred youth with autism spectrum disorders (ASD) including autistic disorder and pervasive developmental disorder not otherwise specified. Consecutively referred children and adolescents to a pediatric psychopharmacology program were assessed with structured diagnostic interview and measures of psychosocial functioning. Comparisons were made between those youth satisfying diagnostic criteria for ASD and age and sex matched youth without ASD referred to the same clinical program.

Anxiety and depressive disorders in offspring at high risk for anxiety: a meta-analysis.

This paper presents a meta-analysis of studies examining prevalence of psychopathology among offspring of anxiety-disordered parents, with the purpose of determining overall risk among these offspring for developing anxiety and depressive disorders. Pooled odds ratios for these disorders among high-risk offspring, compared to offspring of psychiatric and non-psychiatric controls, were calculated. Sixteen papers (including three follow-up studies) were identified, encompassing 1892 offspring (ages 4-25 years).