The mental health care system for children and adolescents in Greece: a review and structure assessment.

Background: The mental health system in Greece faces challenges to complete its transition to a community-oriented model, having significant concerns for child and adolescent care due to lower coverage and service gaps. This component of the mental health system has not been comprehensively evaluated.

Methods: We conducted a review of the mental health care system for children and adolescents in Greece.

The state of mental health in Greece: An international comparative analysis using data from the Global Mental Health Countdown 2030.

Background: Effective mental health systems depend on the functioning of a variety of factors that can be systematically monitored across countries. Macro-level assessments are needed to identify potential areas for improvement in the health sector, particularly in countries that face significant access barriers such as Greece.

Aim: To analyze Greece's mental health-related indicators in comparison to countries with similar socioeconomic contexts and geography and identify priority areas for the national mental health system.

Experience of Service Questionnaire (ESQ) in children and adolescents: factor structure, reliability, validity, item parameters and interpretability of the parent version for practical use in Greece.

Background: Health systems need tools to assess patient's experience of service, but existing tools lack reliability and validity assessment. Our aim is to investigate the factor structure, reliability, validity, item parameters and interpretability of the parent version of the Experience of Service Questionnaire (ESQ) for practical use in Greece.

Methods: A total of 265 caregivers that were using mental health services in Greece participated in this study as part of the Nationwide cross-sectional survey from the Child and Adolescent Mental Health Initiative (CAMHI).

Experience of Service Questionnaire (ESQ) in children and adolescents: factor structure, reliability, validity, item parameters and interpretability of the parent version for practical use in Greece.

Background: Health systems need tools to assess patient's experience of service, but existing tools lack reliability and validity assessment. Our aim is to investigate the factor structure, reliability, validity, item parameters and interpretability of the parent version of the Experience of Service Questionnaire (ESQ) for practical use in Greece.

Methods: A total of 265 caregivers that were using mental health services in Greece participated in this study as part of the Nationwide cross-sectional survey from the Child and Adolescent Mental Health Initiative (CAMHI).

Translation and cross-cultural adaptation of seventeen widely-used assessment instruments for child and adolescent mental health in Greece.

Background: In the context of Greece, many instruments measuring constructs pertinent to child and adolescent mental health lacked a locally-validated, freely-available version. As part of a nationwide survey, we translated and cross-culturally adapted a collection of seventeen brief, largely-employed assessment tools that can be used at scale.

Methods: This study is part of the Child and Adolescent Mental Health Initiative in Greece (CAMHI), a capacity-building program focusing on enhancing mental health care for children and adolescents living in Greece.

Validation of the Greek version of the Accommodation and Enabling Scale for Eating Disorders (AESED).

Eating disorders-related research has shown that families, in order to alleviate family conflict and stress, accommodate the symptoms of individuals with eating disorders. It has been argued that by tolerating or alleviating symptoms, the latter may gradually be reinforced or even fully accepted, as the family becomes increasingly "trapped" in specific eating patterns, weight control behaviors, and body shape worries. The Accommodation and Enabling Scale for Eating Disorders was created in 2009, aiming to assess family adaptability of individuals with eating disorders.

The science of child and adolescent mental health in Greece: a nationwide systematic review.

Evidence-based information is essential for effective mental health care, yet the extent and accessibility of the scientific literature are critical barriers for professionals and policymakers. To map the necessities and make validated resources accessible, we undertook a systematic review of scientific evidence on child and adolescent mental health in Greece encompassing three research topics: prevalence estimates, assessment instruments, and interventions. We searched Pubmed, Web of Science, PsycINFO, Google Scholar, and IATPOTEK from inception to December 16th, 2021.

Association of Genetic Variation in the 3'UTR of LHX6, IMMP2L, and AADAC With Tourette Syndrome.

Tourette Syndrome (TS) is a neurodevelopmental disorder that presents with motor and vocal tics early in childhood. The aim of this study was to investigate genetic variants in the 3' untranslated region (3'UTR) of TS candidate genes with a putative link to microRNA (miRNA) mediated regulation or gene expression. We used an approach to identify 32 variants in the 3'UTR of 18 candidate genes putatively changing the binding site for miRNAs.

Targeted Re-Sequencing Approach of Candidate Genes Implicates Rare Potentially Functional Variants in Tourette Syndrome Etiology.

Although the genetic basis of Tourette Syndrome (TS) remains unclear, several candidate genes have been implicated. Using a set of 382 TS individuals of European ancestry we investigated four candidate genes for TS (, and ) in an effort to identify possibly causal variants using a targeted re-sequencing approach by next generation sequencing technology. Identification of possible disease causing variants under different modes of inheritance was performed using the algorithms implemented in VAAST.

Support of the histaminergic hypothesis in Tourette syndrome: association of the histamine decarboxylase gene in a large sample of families.

Background: Gilles de la Tourette Syndrome is a neurodevelopmental disorder that is caused by the interaction of environment with a complex genetic background. The genetic etiology of the disorder remains, so far, elusive, although multiple promising leads have been recently reported. The recent implication of the histamine decarboxylase (HDC) gene, the key enzyme in histamine production, raises the intriguing hypothesis of a possible role of histaminergic dysfunction leading to TS onset.

[The course of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) over the life span].

Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder is a neurodevelopmental disorder, associated with the maturation of the nervous system and appearing on a standard proceeding with special cognitive impairments. For many years ADHD was concerned as a typical childhood disorder. Long-term studies though, showed that an important percentage of children with ADHD grew as adults with ADHD.

Evaluation of the LIM homeobox genes LHX6 and LHX8 as candidates for Tourette syndrome.

The etiology and pathophysiology of Tourette Syndrome (TS) remain poorly understood. Multiple lines of evidence suggest that a complex genetic background and the cortico-striato-thalamo-cortical circuit are involved. The role of Lhx6 and Lhx8 in the development of the striatal interneurons, prompted us to investigate them as novel candidate genes for TS.

An epidemiological study of number processing and mental calculation in Greek schoolchildren.

The aim of this study was to validate and standardize an instrument for the diagnosis of developmental dyscalculia (mathematics disorder) in a Greek population and to obtain relevant epidemiological data. We used the Neuropsychological Test Battery for Number Processing and Calculation in Children (NUCALC) in a community sample of 240 students ages 7 to 11 years from urban and rural schools. There were no differences between genders in arithmetical performance; however, the effects of grade and socioeconomic level were significant.

The Leyton obsessional inventory - child version in Greek adolescents: standardization in a national school-based survey and two-year follow-up.

Objective: The aims of this study were a) to standardize the survey form of the Leyton Obsessional Inventory - Child Version (Leyton-CV) in Greece, and estimate its sensitivity and specificity, and b) to assess high-risk factors for the development of adolescent obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) within a two year period.

Method: The Leyton-CV was administered to a national, representative, school-based population of 2552 Greek adolescents. Adolescents with a wide range of Leyton-CV scores were interviewed with the SADS-LA to determine the sensitivity and specificity of the instrument.

The Conners-28 teacher questionnaire in clinical and nonclinical samples of Greek children 6-12 years old.

It is accepted practice in child psychiatry to use more than one source of information in assessing behavioural problems in children and adolescents. Employing standardized tools for these assessments allows cross-cultural comparisons and better interchange of the findings. Achenbach's Child Behavior Checklist (CBCL) and Teacher's Report Form (TRF) are two widely accepted instruments that were standardized in Greece within the framework of the European Network for the Study of Hyperkinetic Disorder.