Criterion validity of the Short Mood and Feelings Questionnaire and one- and two-item depression screens in young adolescents

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>The use of short screening questionnaires may be a promising option for identifying children at risk for depression in a community setting. The objective of this study was to assess the validity of the Short Mood and Feelings Questionnaire (SMFQ) and one- and two-item screening instruments for depressive disorders in a school-based sample of young adolescents.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>Participants were 521 sixth-grade students attending public middle schools. Child and parent versions of the SMFQ were administered to evaluate the child's depressive symptoms. The presence of any depressive disorder during the previous month was assessed using the Diagnostic Interview Schedule for Children (DISC) as the criterion standard. First, we assessed the diagnostic accuracy of child, parent, and combined scores of the full 13-item SMFQ by calculating the area under the receiver operating characteristic curve (AUC), sensitivity and specificity. The same approach was then used to evaluate the accuracy of a two-item scale consisting of only depressed mood and anhedonia items, and a single depressed mood item.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>The combined child + parent SMFQ score showed the highest accuracy (AUC = 0.86). Diagnostic accuracy was lower for child (AUC = 0.73) and parent (AUC = 0.74) SMFQ versions. Corresponding versions of one- and two-item screens had lower AUC estimates, but the combined versions of the brief screens each still showed moderate accuracy. Furthermore, child and combined versions of the two-item screen demonstrated higher sensitivity (although lower specificity) than either the one-item screen or the full SMFQ.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>Under conditions where parents accompany children to screening settings (e.g. primary care), use of a child + parent version of the SMFQ is recommended. However, when parents are not available, and the cost of a false positive result is minimal, then a one- or two-item screen may be useful for initial identification of at-risk youth.</p

What explains the relation between family poverty and childhood depressive symptoms?

Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/60956/1/tracy_what explains the relationship_2008.pd

The transition to adulthood for youth who have serious emotional disturbance: developmental transition and young adult outcomes

This article reviews studies that depict the developmental transition from adolescence to young adulthood of persons who have experienced serious emotional disturbance (SED) as children or adolescents. The literature demonstrates that their plight in young adulthood is grave. Youth with SED enter the transition phase delayed in their developmental maturation and face additional challenges relative to their nondisabled peers. As a group, they are undereducated, underemployed, and have limited social supports. Homelessness, criminal activity, and drug use are prevalent. This article defines the transitional youth population, describes the developmental tasks of transition, and summarizes the results of longitudinal studies that have tracked functional outcomes of transitional youth into young adulthood. The discussion focuses on the relevance of these findings to service provision

Washington State exhibits wide regional variation in proportion of Medicaid-eligible children who get needed mental health care

In Washington State, mental health care for Medicaid-eligible children is delivered through thirteen regional support networks. The estimated statewide prevalence rate for serious emotional disturbances in children up to age seventeen is 7 percent; analysis found, however, that the proportion of Medicaid-eligible children who received mental health care ranged from 2.91 percent in the North Central network to 8.16 percent in the Southwest network. The variation was not linked to the racial or ethnic makeup of the local population or the rural or urban nature of the region. Instead, interviews with network administrators indicated a substantial contributor to this regional care variation was the state\u27s Access to Care Standards, which restrict network mental health services to children with the most severe disorders. Other factors contributing to the regional variation included funding, the networks\u27 geographic size, and availability of providers. With the Affordable Care Act expected to bring more children with mental health care needs into the Medicaid system, our findings and recommendations offer policy makers timely information on how to improve children\u27s access to mental health care. © 2012 Project HOPE-The People-to-People Health Foundation, Inc

Correction to: Depression during pregnancy and preterm delivery: a prospective cohort study among women attending antenatal clinic at Pumwani Maternity Hospital

Following the publication of the original article [1], the authors reported the following typesetting errors

Depression and its psychosocial risk factors in pregnant Kenyan adolescents: a cross-sectional study in a community health Centre of Nairobi

Abstract Background Adolescent pregnancies within urban resource-deprived settlements predispose young girls to adverse mental health and psychosocial adversities, notably depression. Depression in sub-Saharan Africa is a leading contributor to years lived with disability (YLD). The study’s objective was to determine the prevalence of depression and related psychosocial risks among pregnant adolescents reporting at a maternal and child health clinic in Nairobi, Kenya. Methods A convenient sample of 176 pregnant adolescents attending antenatal clinic in Kangemi primary healthcare health facility participated in the study. We used PHQ-9 to assess prevalence of depression. Hierarchical multivariate linear regression was performed to determine the independent predictors of depression from the psychosocial factors that were significantly associated with depression at the univariate analyses. Results Of the 176 pregnant adolescents between ages 15-18 years sampled in the study, 32.9% (n = 58) tested positive for a depression diagnosis using PHQ-9 using a cut-off score of 15+. However on multivariate linear regression, after various iterations, when individual predictors using standardized beta scores were examined, having experienced a stressful life event (B = 3.27, P = 0.001, β =0.25) explained the most variance in the care giver burden, followed by absence of social support for pregnant adolescents (B = − 2.76, P = 0.008, β = − 0.19), being diagnosed with HIV/AIDS (B = 3.81, P = 0.004, β =0.17) and being young (B = 2.46, P = 0.038, β =0.14). Conclusion Depression is common among pregnant adolescents in urban resource-deprived areas of Kenya and is correlated with well-documented risk factors such as being of a younger age and being HIV positive. Interventions aimed at reducing or preventing depression in this population should target these groups and provide support to those experiencing greatest stress

Childhood Maltreatment Exposure and Disruptions in Emotion Regulation: A Transdiagnostic Pathway to Adolescent Internalizing and Externalizing Psychopathology

Child maltreatment is a robust risk factor for internalizing and externalizing psychopathology in children and adolescents. We examined the role of disruptions in emotion regulation processes as a developmental mechanism linking child maltreatment to the onset of multiple forms of psychopathology in adolescents. Specifically, we examined whether child maltreatment was associated with emotional reactivity and maladaptive cognitive and behavioral responses to distress, including rumination and impulsive behaviors, in two separate samples. We additionally investigated whether each of these components of emotion regulation were associated with internalizing and externalizing psychopathology and mediated the association between child maltreatment and psychopathology. Study 1 included a sample of 167 adolescents recruited based on exposure to physical, sexual, or emotional abuse. Study 2 included a sample of 439 adolescents in a community-based cohort study followed prospectively for 5 years. In both samples, child maltreatment was associated with higher levels of internalizing psychopathology, elevated emotional reactivity, and greater habitual engagement in rumination and impulsive responses to distress. In Study 2, emotional reactivity and maladaptive responses to distress mediated the association between child maltreatment and both internalizing and externalizing psychopathology. These findings provide converging evidence for the role of emotion regulation deficits as a transdiagnostic developmental pathway linking child maltreatment with multiple forms of psychopathology