When do we recommend an EEG and cranial MRI evaluation for autistic children?

Objective: This study has planned to investigate the role of electroencephalography (EEG) and cranial magnetic resonance imaging (cMRI) in the evaluation and diagnosis of neurological disorders combined with autism in children. Method: A total number of 121 autistic children ranging from 3 to 18 years of age and who had applied to our hospital's clinics between January 2010 and January 2011 were included. The sociodemographic properties, time of birth, birth history, weight at birth, age at onset of walking and language development were investigated. By means of a reevaluation of cMRI, sleep EEG and other examination findings, additional neurological diagnoses, if any were recorded. Children for whom, a cMRI/EEG evaluation was carried out and for whom such an evaluation was not carried out was compared statistically as to certain risk factors separately for additional diagnoses and neurological disorders. In addition, the relationship between cMRI and EEG findings and additional neurological disorder was examined. Results: Autistic children (Male/Female: 92/76) aged 9.30±4.2 years have been diagnosed neurological disorder additionally with a percentage of 40%. The most common of these was the epileptic seizure as 33%. No data was obtained about an additional neurological disorder in 22% of cases who performed cMRI and in 34% of cases who performed EEG. Ratio of presence of a pathological finding in cMRI was high in patients with cerebral palsy, whereas it was not found to be meaningful in patients with epileptic seizures. Analyzing risk factors for neurological disease, birth history of perinatal problems and gait disorders were seen more frequently in patients who required cMRI as compared to those in patients who did not require cMRI. Gait age was older in patients who required cMRI (18±8 months) as compared to patients without cMRI (14±4 months). Conclusion: In our autistic children, cMRI and EEG examinations had been extensively used for the investigation of additional neurological disorders. Both cMRI and EEG examinations had been requested more frequent in the presence of perinatal problems. The other risk factors for additional neurological disorders were history of premature birth to request EEG and older age at onset of walking, walking problems to request cMRI. However with detailed clinic evaluation of autistic children and clarification for investigations criteria unnecessary EEG and cMRI should be avoided

Determination of Family Needs of Mothers of Children with Down Syndrome and Their Opinions Regarding Sense of Social Support

WOS: 000509362800002The aim of this study is to determine the family needs of mothers of children with Down-Syndrome and their opinions regarding sense of social support. Research participants are 20 mothers residing in Gaziantep city and having a child with Down-Syndrome. Having employed qualitative model, data for this study were collected from participant mothers via semi-structured interview and collected data were analyzed by content analysis. This study revealed that children with Down-Syndrome and their mothers want to be accepted in their social interactions. Mothers reported that their children are disadvantageous in benefiting from general education process and they emphasized their plea for support, especially from local administrations and nongovernmental organizations. Mothers are in need of education as regards the deficient skills of their children and the coping strategies against such deficiencies. They also reported their request for financial support to meet the needs of their Down-Syndrome children and benefit from better educational opportunities. Mothers added that they need support mostly in domains of education and social skills. Mothers reiterated their expectations from local administrations and nongovernmental organizations to hold social activities

The forensic cases applied to an education and research hospital's child psychiatry department

WOS: 000294932500008Objective: The stressful experiences, especially sexual abuse, damage the child's psychology, mental health and quality of life. Forensic psychiatric evaluation includes the expertness, provides information for judicial decision and also is important to diagnose the psychiatric disorder of the child and protect him. Because of these reasons we were aimed to examine the characteristics of children applied to our department for criminal report. Methods: The files of 73 cases aged 4-18 years have been examined retrospectively who referred to Erenkoy Psychiatry Hospital Child Psychiatry Outpatient Department between January 2007 and December 2009 for criminal reports. Beside the sociodemographic characteristics, psychopathology, intelligence levels and crime characteristics of these children were also examined. Results: The prosecutor's request was the evaluation of the psychiatric status in 86.3% of cases. Eighty-nine percent (65 cases) of 73 cases were applied for evaluation after sexual abuse. The rates of psychiatric diagnoses in sexually abused children were 32.3% posttraumatic stress disorder, 20% adjustment disorders, 16.9% acute stress disorder, 13.8% depressive disorders. We did not find any active psychiatric disorder in 16.9% of the cases. Intelligence Quotient were normal in 64.6% of the cases (n=42). 56.6% of the sexual offenders were acquaintance (9 incest cases-13.8%), 17% were friend-related people, 26.4% were stranger, 20.4 % were under 18 years of age. Discussion: The psychiatric evaluation after sexual abuse was the most frequent request of the prosecutors'. 83.1% of the children had active psychiatric disorders that were evaluated because of sexual abuse. The most common diagnosis was posttraumatic stress disorder and this result is consistent with earlier findings. It is clear that stressful experiences especially sexually abuse damage the child's psychology, mental health and quality of life. (Anatolian Journal of Psychiatry 2011; 12:221-225

Prevalence, comorbidities and mediators of childhood anxiety disorders in urban Turkey: a national representative epidemiological study

Purpose: The aim of this study is to evaluate the prevalence of anxiety disorders, its correlation with sociodemographic characteristics, its comorbidities with other psychiatric disorders and its predictors in school-aged children. Methods: This study is part of a representative, multi-centered national study that is planned by the Turkish Association of Child and Adolescent Mental Health to evaluate the prevalence of psychopathology among elementary school students in Turkey between the years 2014–2015. Children are screened via Kiddie Schedule for Affective Disorders and Schizophrenia for School Age Children Present and Lifetime Version. Impairment is assessed by a 3-point Likert type scale independently by the parent and the teacher. The final sample included 5842 children with the mean age of 8.7 years. Results: The prevalence of any anxiety disorder without considering impairment is 16.7% and considering impairment is 5.2% in children according to our study. We found significant differences for comorbid Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder, Disruptive Behavior Disorder, Mood Disorders, Tic Disorders, Obsessive Compulsive Disorder, Enuresis Nocturna, Encopresis, and Intellectual Disability. Having a history of paternal physical disorder, living in the regions of Marmara, Mediterranean and Black Sea were found to be the main predictors of having childhood anxiety disorders according to the logistic regression analysis. Conclusion: Better understanding of childhood anxiety disorders, comorbid conditions and predictors will result in earlier diagnosis and more appropriate treatment. © 2022, The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer-Verlag GmbH Germany