Childhood Mental Disorders Overview

Problems with social interactions, including trouble understanding social cues, sharing interests, and initiating interactions.

Difficulties with nonverbal communication like eye contact, body language, and gestures, impacting social interaction.

Challenges in developing, maintaining, and understanding friendships or relationships.

Recurring, specific patterns of behavior or interests, such as repetitive movements, routines, or obsessions.

Repetitive motor actions, like hand flapping or lining up objects.

Rigid adherence to routines and aversion to changes in things like daily schedules.

Strong, unusual interests that can be obsessive or extreme.

Unusual reactions to sensory input like sounds, sights, or textures.

Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) affects approximately 1% of the global population.

While ASD is more prevalent in boys, girls often go undiagnosed due to differences in symptom presentation.

ASD and intellectual disability can occur together. To diagnose both, social communication skills must be below what's expected for developmental level.

Girls with ASD are often able to mask their challenges better due to higher intellectual ability and less impairment in nonverbal communication.

Evaluating ASD requires a team of professionals like doctors, therapists, and educational specialists.

Gathering information about a child's development, including early signs of ASD, is crucial in diagnosis.

Specialized tools like the ADI-R and ADOS-2 are used to assess communication and behaviors specific to ASD.

Structured therapy programs help individuals with ASD build functional skills and reduce challenging behaviors.

Difficulty paying attention to details, staying focused, following instructions, and organizing tasks. This can lead to careless mistakes, trouble completing work, and losing things.

Excessive movement, fidgeting, talking excessively, difficulty waiting turns, and blurting out answers before the question is finished. This can make it hard to sit still, follow rules, and control impulses.

People with ADHD often perform differently depending on the task and context. They may struggle with tasks that require sustained attention, organization, or behavioral restraint.

A pattern of angry, defiant, and argumentative behavior towards authority figures. This includes losing temper, refusing to follow rules, deliberately annoying others, and blaming others for their mistakes.

ODD involves at least 4 of these symptoms: frequent temper tantrums, touchiness, easily annoyed, anger, arguing with authority figures, defiance of rules, deliberate annoyance, blaming others, and vindictiveness. These behaviors should occur at least once a week for 6 months.

ODD causes distress for both the child and the people around them. It negatively affects social, educational, and occupational functioning, making it hard to build healthy relationships, succeed in school, or hold down a job.

A more serious behavioral disorder than ODD involving actions that violate rights of others or social norms. This includes aggression towards people or animals, property destruction, deceitfulness, and theft.

CD involves two main categories of behavior: aggression towards people and animals (bullying, threatening, intimidation) and deceitfulness or theft. These behaviors are considered more serious and potentially harmful than ODD.

A child must exhibit at least 3 out of 15 behaviors in the past year, including at least one behavior in the past 6 months.

Intruding into someone's property without permission, including stealing, damaging, or simply entering without consent.

Behaviors that break significant rules, such as running away from home, staying out past curfew, or skipping school.

Intentionally damaging property through actions like arson, vandalism, or breaking belongings.

The same child may show symptoms of two or all three disorders, either at the same time or over time.

These disorders often occur together, suggesting shared causes.

Diagnosis relies primarily on a comprehensive clinical assessment, not just lab tests.

Understanding the child's own experience of their behaviors and challenges is crucial.

About 10-20% of children and adolescents worldwide have a diagnosable mental disorder, with the number increasing with age.

Mental disorders in childhood can persist into adulthood, affecting various aspects of life like education, relationships, and work.

Child and adolescent psychiatric disorders encompass a wide range of mental health areas, including cognitive and learning, social communication, emotional and behavioral, and neurological and physical.

Young children with attachment disorder struggle to bond with caregivers, regulate emotions, and develop social skills, showing insensitivity to others.

These disorders, including autism, are characterized by significant developmental delays in communication, social interaction, and behavior. These challenges make it difficult for the child to function effectively in social situations and may lead to social isolation.

These disorders, such as ADHD, involve difficulties with attention, impulsivity, and hyperactivity. These behaviors can negatively impact school performance and social relationships, leading to challenging interactions with peers and difficulty learning and participating in class.

These disorders are characterized by aggressive, defiant, and rule-breaking behaviors. They involve violating the rights of others and social norms, leading to conflicts with authority figures and problems with the law.

Mood and anxiety disorders are common in children. These conditions can manifest as excessive sadness, fear, worry, anger, and irritability, interfering with everyday functioning and social well-being.

A childhood anxiety disorder characterized by excessive fear of separation from primary caregivers. Symptoms include refusal to attend school, somatic complaints, severe anxiety, and worry about harm to the caregiver.

Characterized by a persistent low mood and loss of interest or pleasure in activities, along with at least 5 other symptoms, such as weight loss, insomnia, fatigue, feelings of worthlessness, and suicidal thoughts.

A personality disorder involving instability in relationships, self-image, and emotions. Individuals experience intense fear of abandonment, impulsive behaviors, and difficulty controlling anger.

Self-harm can manifest in various ways, including wrist cutting, drug overdose, head banging, and hair pulling. It's important to note that severity can range from superficial to deep wounds.

Self-harm serves different purposes, such as communication, tension release, addiction, and suicidal intent. The specific function often depends on the individual's circumstances and emotional state.

Personal factors, such as mental health conditions, previous self-harm, and poor coping skills, increase the risk. Environmental factors, including family history, peer pressure, and traumatic experiences, can also contribute.

An eating disorder characterized by extreme food restriction, intense fear of gaining weight, and distorted body image.

Treatment typically focuses on addressing underlying mental health issues, removing access to self-harm tools, and teaching coping mechanisms. Validation and emotional regulation skills are crucial.