Autosomal dominant Kufs' disease: a cause of early onset dementia.

Kufs' disease is the rare, adult-onset form of the neuronal ceroid-lipofuscinoses (NCL). Two clinical Kufs' phenotypes have been described, one featuring generalized tonic-clonic seizures and the other characterized by dementia. Autosomal dominant inheritance of Kufs' disease has been reported for only two families.

Results of treatment one year later: child and adolescent partial hospitalization.

Objective: One criticism of academicians is that they evaluate and disseminate outcome studies based more on the value and merit of the research design than on the utility of the findings for improving clinical practice. Increasing pressure on programs to evaluate the effectiveness of behavioral health care is transitioning outcome measurement from the exclusive domain of the researcher toward the clinical/organizational domain. To explore the multiple applications of such clinical outcome data, this article presents the results from a study of 114 patients completing treatment in two child and adolescent partial hospital programs.

Anticipatory stress in children and adolescents.

Objective: Circumstances surrounding the New Madrid earthquake prediction on Dec. 3, 1990, offered a unique opportunity to study the effects of a disaster warning stage on children and adolescents.

Method: An initial structured interview was administered to 553 third- and 10th-grade students before December 3, with follow-up interviews conducted 6-8 weeks later.

Physical and sexual abuse in childhood: relationship with post-traumatic stress disorder.

This study describes the reactions of children and adolescents to physical and/or sexual abuse, suggesting two distinct symptom pictures. Findings indicate that a majority (55%) of this clinical population develop symptoms characteristic of post-traumatic stress disorder, whereas abused children and adolescents who do not develop associated post-traumatic stress disorder symptoms exhibit more anxiety, depression, externalizing behaviors, and more problems overall. Significant differences were also found between children and adolescents reacting to single event abuse who display more behavior disorders and victims of ongoing abuse who appear significantly more disturbed, with symptoms ranging from depression to psychosis.

Treatment protocols in child and adolescent day treatment.

Twenty treatment protocols in a day treatment program for children and adolescents have been developed by multidisciplinary groups based on a review of 200 patients. The protocols classify patients according to symptom clusters and provide standardized treatment plans for each classification. Each protocol contains a definition of the symptom cluster, a list of presenting problems, a list of other protocols to consider, admission guidelines, treatment options, and discharge criteria.