The Nurse Role in the Management of ADHD in Children and Adolescent: A Literature Review

Objective: To review literature regarding existing and recommended roles for nurses in the management of children with ADHD. Methods: MEDLINE and CINAHL were searched from 2010 to the end of 2019 with the following keywords: ADHD, nurse, child, and inclusion criteria published in an English journal. Results: Forty-three records were found. However, only five articles scientifically evaluated the nurse role. The nurse role in ADHD management seemed to vary across countries with nurses working independently or as part of a team with delegated responsibility. Conclusion: The literature review gave information to suggest that nurses can have a significant role in providing a range of medical and non-medical management.publishedVersio

Self-reported efficacy of neurofeedback treatment in a clinical randomized controlled study of ADHD children and adolescents

Background: Many non-pharmacological treatments for children and adolescents with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) have been attempted, but reports indicate that most are ineffective. Although neurofeedback (NF) is a treatment approach for children with ADHD that remains promising, a variety of appropriate measures have been used in reporting and evaluating its effect. Objective: To report the self-evaluations of NF treatment by children and adolescents with ADHD. Methods: Randomized controlled trial in 91 children and adolescents with ADHD, aged less than 18 years (mean, 11.2 years) participated in a 30-session program of intensive NF treatment. Participants were randomized and allocated by sequentially numbered sealed envelopes into three groups: methylphenidate (MPH) as an active control group, and two trial groups NF with MPH, and NF alone. ADHD core symptoms and school performance were given on a scale of 1 to 10 using a self-reporting questionnaire, and the changes in these scores after treatment were used as the self-reported evaluation. Basic statistical methods (descriptive, analyses of variance, exact χ2 test, and paired t-test) were used to investigate the baseline data. Changes in ADHD core symptoms and treatment effects were investigated using a general linear model for repeated measures. Results: Eighty participants completed the treatment study and 73 (91%) responded sufficiently on the self-reporting questionnaires. The treatment groups were comparable in age, sex, and cognition as well as in the baseline levels of core ADHD symptoms. All treatments resulted in significant improvements regarding attention and hyperactivity (P<0.001), and did not differ from each other in effectiveness. However, a significant treatment effect in school performance was observed (P=0.042), in which only the NF group showed a significant improvement. Conclusion: The self-reported improvements in ADHD core symptoms and school performance shortly after treatment indicate NF treatment being promising in comparison with medication, suggesting NF as an alternative treatment for children and adolescents who do not respond to MPH, or who suffer side effects. Further long-term follow-up is needed.publishedVersio

Trajectories of psychiatric disorders in a cohort of children with cerebral palsy across four years

Background: Risk of psychiatric disorders has been reported for children and adolescents with cerebral palsy (CP) at different ages, however little is known regarding the long-term trajectories of these disorders. Objective: The aim of this study was to assess the trajectories of psychiatric disorders in children with CP, and to explore their association to risk factors. Methods: We assessed a cohort of children with CP at age seven and again at age eleven with a child psychiatric diagnostic instrument, and parents were informants. We assessed type of CP, Gross Motor Function Classification System (GMFCS) levels, and co-occurring medical conditions in a medical examination, through the medical records, and in an interview with the parents at the onset of the study. Results: We found a significant increase in the prevalence of emotional disorders from seven to eleven years of age (p 0.01), whereas the prevalence of behavioral disorders was stable. Half of the cohort met criteria for a psychiatric disorder at both assessment points. Type of CP, spastic bilateral or unilateral, dyskinetic or ataxic, and co-occurring medical conditions were non-significant predictors of psychiatric disorders. Subthreshold psychiatric disorders at age seven were predictive of psychiatric disorders at age eleven. Conclusions: We found a persistently elevated prevalence of psychiatric disorders in children with CP. Prevalence of behavioral disorders was stable, whereas we found a significant four-fold increase in emotional disorders. Sub-threshold psychiatric disorders predicted later psychiatric disorders. Increased focus on early mental health symptoms as well as more knowledge regarding emotional disorders in children with CP seems warranted.publishedVersio

Illness perception in children with cerebral palsy, a longitudinal cohort study

Background The perception of a disorder could be of importance both in problem solving behaviors, and in the emotional approach towards a disorder. Aims In this paper, we wanted to assess changes in illness perception in children with Cerebral Palsy (CP) over a four-year interval, to compare parental and self-ratings, and to assess illness perceptions according to co-occurring medical and psychiatric disorders. Methods Parents in a cohort of children with CP (N = 36), filled in the Illness Perception Questionnaire at age seven and again at age eleven, and self-reports were gathered at age eleven. Stability across time, informant differences and scores according to motor function, intellectual disability and the prevalence of psychiatric disorders were assessed. Results We found stable parental perceptions across a four –year interval. Parents reported significantly higher impact of CP on the child, than that reported by the child itself. In children with a more severe motor disability and/or co-occurring psychiatric disorders, parents reported significantly higher median scores for perceived impact of the CP condition on symptoms, duration of the condition, and impact on leisure activities, compared to those who had less severe motor disability and/or intellectual abilities within the normal range. Conclusions We propose that illness perception should be included in the follow-up of children with CP, as it may provide a mutual understanding between the child/family and professionals involved in follow-up services, with possible impact on treatment adherence and outcome of the condition.publishedVersio

Views of young people with psychosis on using virtual reality assisted therapy. A qualitative study

Aim Service disengagement is a challenge in young individuals struggling with psychosis. Combining cognitive behavioural therapy for psychosis (CBTp) with virtual reality (VR) has proven acceptable and potentially effective for symptoms and social functioning in adults with psychosis. However, studies focusing on young adolescents are lacking. The aim of the present study was to investigate the acceptability of VR-assisted CBTp among adolescents with psychosis. Methods A qualitative study investigating the acceptability of VR during exposure-based social training among adolescents with early onset psychosis. Thematic analysis was used to identify, analyse, interpret and report patterns from the qualitative interviews. Results A total of 27 adolescents with psychosis were invited to participate, 11 declined and 16 were enrolled (59%), and all completed the study. The participants were from 13 until 18 years old, mean age 16 years. None of them had previous experience with use of VR in therapy, but 10 out of 16 participants had prior experience with VR from playing video games. Regarding acceptability, 14 out of 16 had positive expectations towards using VR in CBTp, and they would prefer using VR during exposure-based social training to real-life training only. Conclusions VR-assisted CBTp can be an acceptable intervention for adolescents with psychosis, given their comfort with technology and the opportunity to confront their fears in less threatening virtual social settings with fewer social risks. The present study yields support to continue developing VR-assisted therapy for adolescents, and focusing on VR-interventions for early onset psychosis.publishedVersio

An interdisciplinary intervention for children with complex health complaints; a feasibility study of selection criteria

Background: There is a need for re-designing the health service for children suffering from complex and compound health complaints. Based on a previous register study, we have developed criteria to select patients with complex health complaints eligible for an Intervention with an interdisciplinary professional team. The team consists of a pediatrician, a psychologist and a physiotherapist. Method: To identify children with complex health complaints who would benefit from this intervention, we have selected a group of patients by using a set of criteria consisting of the following criteria: multi-referred young school age children referred to both mental health service and pediatric service. This study focuses on the feasibility of these criteria by measuring participation and compliance and by gathering feedback from the team members in the interdisciplinary team. Results: Among 677 children aged 6−12 years referred to a regional hospital, we found 32 (5%) children eligible for the interdisciplinary Intervention according to the applied criteria. Only 6% of the invited parents declined to participate in the intervention. According to the interdisciplinary team, the intervention was found suitable for 88% of the children. Conclusion: The suggested criteria seemed feasible, in terms of identifying eligible patients for this interdisciplinary Intervention for children with complex health complaints.publishedVersio

Symptoms and antecedents of autism in children born extremely premature: a national population-based study

The objective of this study is to investigate the prevalence of autism (ASD) symptoms, i.e. , social difficulties, repetitive behaviors, and communicational problems, among children born extremely preterm (EP) compared to a reference group, and to investigate possible antecedents of ASD symptoms among EP children. Method is a national Norwegian cohort of 11 year old EP children, excluding those with intellectual disabilities, non-ambulatory cerebral palsy, blindness, and/or deafness. Parents and teachers reported ASD symptoms using The Autism Spectrum Screening Questionnaire (ASSQ). Social difficulties, repetitive behaviors, communicational problems, and a total ASSQ score were presented. Combined ratings on the ASSQ was defined as parent and/or teacher scoring the child ≥ 98th percentile of the reference group, which was the population-based Bergen Child Study. Of eligible children, 216 (64%) EP and 1882 (61%) reference children participated. EP children had significantly higher mean scores and combined ratings on social difficulties (14.5% vs. 4.1%, OR: 3.2), repetitive behaviors (23.7% vs. 4.0%, OR: 6.4), communicational problems (23.1% vs. 4.8%, OR: 5.4), and the total ASSQ score (18.3% vs. 3.4%, OR: 5.7) compared to reference children. Only no prenatal steroids, IQ 70–84, and mental health problems at 5 years of age were significantly associated with ASD symptoms at 11 years of age. EP children were at increased risk of social difficulties, repetitive behaviors, and communicational problems, and approximately one out of five were reported as high scorers of ASD symptoms. No prenatal steroids use, IQ in the lower range, and mental health problems at 5 years of age were associated with ASD symptoms.publishedVersio

Bridging the Gap for Children With Compound Health Challenges: An Intervention Protocol

Background: During the last decades, there is a major shift in the panorama of diseases in children and adolescents. More children are referred to the specialized health care services due to less specific symptoms and more complex health challenges. These children are particularly difficult to care for in a “single-disease” oriented system. Our objective was to develop an alternative and more holistic approach better tailored to the complex needs of these children. Method: The target patient population is children between 6 and 13 years with three or more referrals including both the pediatric department and the mental health services. Furthermore, to be included in the project, the child's actual complaints needed to be clinically considered as an unclear or compound condition in need of an alternative approach. This paper describes the process of developing an intervention where a complementary professional team meets the patient and his/her family altogether for 2.5 h. The consultation focus on clarifying the complex symptomatology and on problem solving. The bio-psycho-social model is applied, emphasizing the patient's story as told on the whiteboard. In the dynamic processes of development, piloting, evaluating, and adjusting the components, feed-back from the patients, their families, professional team members, and external team coaches is important. The professional teams include pediatricians, psychologists and physiotherapists. Achieving the transformation from a logistic oriented team where members act separately toward a real complementary team, seems to be a success factor. Discussion: Composing multi-disciplinary and complementary teams was an essential part of the re-designed intervention. Team interaction transforming the professionals from working as a logistic team to act as a complementary team, was one of the important requirements in the process. When re-designing the specialist health service, it is mandatory to anchor all changes among employees as well as the hospital leadership. In addition, it is important to include patient experiences in the process of improvement. Evaluation of long-term outcomes is needed to investigate possible benefits from the new intervention.publishedVersio

Mental Health in School-Aged Children Prenatally Exposed to Alcohol and Other Substances

Prenatal exposure to substances can possibly influence a child’s neurodevelopment and may impact on subsequent mental health. We investigated the mental health status of school-aged children referred to a pediatric hospital with a history of prenatal exposure to alcohol or other substances. Mental health was assessed using the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire and compared with a reference group. A total of 105 of 128 (82%) eligible children prenatally exposed to substances participated in the study, with 48 children exposed to alcohol and 57 to other substances. Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire subscale mean scores, total difficulties scores, and total impact scores were statistically significantly higher in the group of exposed children, compared with the reference group. In this hospital-based population of school-aged children prenatally exposed to alcohol or other substances, the exposed group had an increased risk of mental health problems, compared with the reference group.publishedVersio

Co-existing symptoms and risk factors among African school children with hyperactivity-inattention symptoms in Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of Congo

The aims of the study were to explore hyperactivity-inattention symptoms and co-existing symptoms of emotional and behavioural problems among African school children and their relationship with health status, socio-demographic factors, and school performance. Method: A case-control approach was used. The Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ) was used to explore the co-existing emotional and behavioural symptoms and a semi-structured interview with parents to explore the socio-demographic variables. The sample included 357 school children at the age of seven to nine years: 183 children were defined as cases, defined by abnormal scores on the SDQ hyperactivity-inattention scale (SDQ-HI) and 174 randomly selected children among those with normal scores on the SDQ-HI were defined as controls. No age and gender differences were noticed between the two groups. Results: A younger maternal age at childbirth, and poor school performances were more frequent among cases than controls. Three quarter of the hyperactive-inattentive children had co-existing symptoms according to SDQ, the most common being conduct problems. Conclusion: As in other cultures, co-existence of hyperactivity-inattention symptoms and emotional and behavioural problems was found in this African setting. Further validation of behavioural screening instruments in African children is called for.submittedVersionsubmittedVersio