Tourette syndrome associated with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder: The impact of tics and psychopharmacological treatment options.

Tourette syndrome (TS) is a neurodevelopmental disorder characterized by multiple chronic motor and vocal tics beginning in childhood. Several studies describe the association between TS and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). Fifty percent of children diagnosed with ADHD have comorbid tic disorder.

Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder characteristics: II. Clinical correlates of irritable mood.

Background: This study describes the relationship of irritable mood (IRR) with affective disorders in youths with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD).

Methods: Five hundred ADHD subjects were assessed with the childhood version of the Schedule for Affective Disorder & Schizophrenia. Subjects were in a genetic ADHD protocol and limited to those of Caucasian/European descent.

What can ADHD without comorbidity teach us about comorbidity?

Neuropsychiatric comorbidity in ADHD is frequent, impairing and poorly understood. In this report, characteristics of comorbid and comorbid-free ADHD subjects are investigated in an attempt to identify differences that could potentially advance our understanding of risk factors. In a clinically-referred ADHD cohort of 449 youths (ages 6-18), age, gender, IQ, SES and ADHD symptoms were compared among ADHD comorbid free subjects and ADHD with internalizing and externalizing disorders.

Parental ADHD status and its association with proband ADHD subtype and severity.

Objective: To better understand the familial transmission of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), a highly heritable disorder, the effects of paternal and maternal ADHD status on probands' ADHD symptoms and subtypes were investigated.

Study Design: In 323 trios with ADHD, data from a structured interview and a self-report scale (score of >21) were used to determine ADHD probands' diagnostic status and parental ADHD status, respectively. Parental ADHD status on proband ADHD severity and subtypes was investigated.

ADHD latent class clusters: DSM-IV subtypes and comorbidity.

ADHD (Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder) has a complex, heterogeneous phenotype only partially captured by Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-IV) criteria. In this report, latent class analyses (LCA) are used to identify ADHD phenotypes using K-SADS-IVR (Schedule for Affective Disorders & Schizophrenia for School Age Children-IV-Revised) symptoms and symptom severity data from a clinical sample of 500 ADHD subjects, ages 6-18, participating in an ADHD genetic study. Results show that LCA identified six separate ADHD clusters, some corresponding to specific DSM-IV subtypes while others included several subtypes.

Nocturnal enuresis: a suggestive endophenotype marker for a subgroup of inattentive attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder.

Objective: Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and enuresis co-occur at a higher rate than expected; the cause for this is unclear.

Study Design: Diagnostic and demographic variables were compared in 344 children ages 6 to 12 years, with and without enuresis, recruited in an ADHD genetic study. Sleep variables were investigated in a subgroup of 44 enuretic children with age- and sex-matched nonenuretic controls.

Candidate gene analysis in an on-going genome-wide association study of attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder: suggestive association signals in ADRA1A.

Objectives: Attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is a highly heritable, common developmental disorder. Although a few confirmed associations have emerged from candidate gene studies, these have shown the same limitations that have become evident in the study of other complex diseases, often with inconsistent and nonreplicated results across different studies.

Methods: In this report, 27 ADHD candidate genes were explored in greater depth using high-density tag single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) genotyping.

ADHD characteristics: I. Concurrent co-morbidity patterns in children & adolescents.

Objective: 342 Caucasian subjects with attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) were recruited from pediatric and behavioral health clinics for a genetic study. Concurrent comorbidity was assessed to characterize the clinical profile of this cohort.

Methods: Subjects 6 to 18 years were diagnosed with the Schedule for Affective Disorders & Schizophrenia for School aged Children (K-SADS-P IVR).

Sertraline in children and adolescents with major depressive disorder.

Objective: To explore time to first response and time to first persistent response of sertraline versus placebo and compare these parameters between children (6-11 years old, n = 177) and adolescents (12-17 years old, n = 199) with major depressive disorder.

Method: A 10-week placebo-controlled treatment was followed by a 24-week open-label sertraline treatment. The double-blind studies were not powered to detect efficacy differences between age groups.

Cardiovascular effects of mixed amphetamine salts extended release in the treatment of school-aged children with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder.

Background: The cardiovascular safety of mixed amphetamine salts extended release (MAS XR) was evaluated in 2968 children 6-12 years of age with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD).

Methods: In this prospective, open-label, noncomparative, community-based study, subjects whose symptoms of ADHD were well controlled with stimulant medication maintained their established treatment regimens for 2 weeks before enrollment into the current study. Subjects' regimens were then converted to an approximately equivalent once-daily dose of MAS XR 10, 20, or 30 mg/d according to a medication-conversion algorithm, which could be adjusted to 40 mg/d for optimal efficacy and tolerability.

Long-term sertraline treatment of children and adolescents with major depressive disorder.

Objective: The aim of this study was to assess the long-term safety, tolerability, and efficacy of sertraline 50-200 mg once-daily in children (6-11 year olds) and adolescents (12-18 year olds) with a Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, 4th edition (DSM-IV) diagnosis of major depressive disorder (MDD).

Methods: This study consisted of a 24-week open-label observational study of children and adolescents who had completed either of two 10-week double-blind, placebo-controlled trials. The Children's Depression Rating Scale-Revised (CDRS-R) was the primary measure of efficacy.

A community assessment, open-label study of the safety, tolerability, and effectiveness of mixed amphetamine salts extended release in school-age children with ADHD.

Objective: To assess the safety, tolerability, and effectiveness of mixed amphetamine salts extended release (MAS XR) in school-age children with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) treated in a community practice setting.

Methods: Children aged 6-12 years (N = 2968) with DSM-IV-defined ADHD entered a 9-week prospective, open-label, non-comparative study of MAS XR at 386 sites. For at least 2 weeks before enrollment, subjects with well-controlled ADHD received their consistent dose of previously prescribed psychostimulant.

Gender differences in adolescent depression: do symptoms differ for boys and girls?

Background: Limited prior research suggests that depressed women are more likely to experience certain symptoms of depression than are depressed men. The purpose of this study was to examine whether such gender differences in depressive symptoms are present during adolescence.

Methods: The Childhood Version of the Schedule for Affective Disorders and Schizophrenia and the Beck Depression Inventory were administered to adolescents presenting for evaluation at an outpatient clinic (n=383; ages 11.

Psychotropic prescription practices in child psychiatric inpatients 9 years old and younger.

Objective: We set out to examine psychotropic prescribing patterns among inner city children on public assistance admitted to a university-based inpatient service.

Methods: A chart review of children 9 years old and younger admitted between 1998 and 2001 recorded demographic variables, diagnoses, and admission and discharge medications.

Results: The sample (N = 301) was 78% male, 66% African American, and averaged 7.

Efficacy of sertraline in the treatment of children and adolescents with major depressive disorder: two randomized controlled trials.

Context: The efficacy, safety, and tolerability of selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) in the treatment of adults with major depressive disorder (MDD) are well established. Comparatively few data are available on the effects of SSRIs in depressed children and adolescents.

Objective: To evaluate the efficacy and safety of sertraline compared with placebo in treatment of pediatric patients with MDD.

Taxonicity of adolescent melancholia: a categorical or dimensional construct?

A taxometric analysis was conducted to test the hypothesis that the latent structure of melancholia in adolescents is categorical. Two taxometric procedures were used: Mean Above Minus Below a Cut (MAMBAC) and Maximum Covariance (MAXCOV) analyses. Participants were 378 adolescents presenting for a depression evaluation.