The p Factor Consistently Predicts Long-Term Psychiatric and Functional Outcomes in Anxiety-Disordered Youth.

OBJECTIVE: Pediatric anxiety disorders can have a chronic course and are considered gateway disorders to adult psychopathology, but no consistent predictors of long-term outcome have been identified. A single latent symptom dimension that reflects features shared by all mental health disorders, the p factor, is thought to reflect mechanisms that cut across mental disorders. Whether p predicts outcome in youth with psychiatric disorders has not been examined. We tested whether the p factor predicted long-term psychiatric and functional outcomes in a large, naturalistically followed-up cohort of anxiety-disordered youth. METHOD: Children and adolescents enrolled in a randomized controlled treatment trial of pediatric anxiety were followed-up on average 6 years posttreatment and then annually for 4 years. Structural equation modeling was used to estimate p at baseline. Both p and previously established predictors were modeled as predictors of long-term outcome. RESULTS: Higher levels of p at baseline were related to more mental health disorders, poorer functioning, and greater impairment across all measures at all follow-up time points. p Predicted outcome above and beyond previously identified predictors, including diagnostic comorbidity at baseline. Post hoc analyses showed that p predicted long-term anxiety outcome, but not acute treatment outcome, suggesting that p may be uniquely associated with long-term outcome. CONCLUSION: Children and adolescents with anxiety disorders who present with a liability toward broad mental health problems may be at a higher risk for poor long-term outcome across mental health and functional domains. Efforts to assess and to address this broad liability may enhance long-term outcome.

Person-Centered Profiles Among Treatment-Seeking Children and Adolescents with Anxiety Disorders.

Latent profile analysis (LPA) was used to derive homogeneous subgroups within the Child/Adolescent Anxiety Multimodal Study sample (N = 488; 7-17 years, M = 10.69, SD = 2.80) and examine whether class membership predicted or moderated treatment response. Subgroups were identified on baseline multi-informant measures of variables most consistently associated with outcome (youth anxiety/diagnosis, impairment, family psychopathology/functioning). Subgroup membership was examined as a predictor/moderator of outcome across the four treatment conditions (CBT, Sertraline, CBT+Sertraline, pill placebo) at posttreatment (12 weeks) and open-extension follow-up (24 weeks). Four subgroups emerged: mild symptoms/impairment, moderate symptoms/impairment, moderate symptoms/impairment with family dysfunction/parental psychopathology, and severe symptoms/impairment. There were significant between-class differences on socioeconomic status (SES; lower reported SES in the moderate with family dysfunction/parental psychopathology class compared to the mild and moderate class) and age (older age in the severe symptoms class compared to the other three classes). Youth in the mild symptoms/impairment class showed lower posttreatment anxiety across conditions but reported significantly lower symptom severity at baseline. Controlling for demographic differences, response to treatment type did not differ across classes. Analyses indicate that elevated family dysfunction/parental psychopathology clusters primarily within one subgroup of anxious youth rather than mapping onto symptom severity, highlighting the utility of LPA for clarifying within-person combinations of predictor/moderator variables. Implications for development of interventions targeting class-relevant variables are discussed.

Treating a Child With Anxiety and Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder? Don't Rule Out Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy.

Anxiety disorders (ADs) and attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) are two of the most common psychiatric disorders in youth and approximately 25% of those with an AD have comorbid ADHD.1 Children with AD and ADHD evidence greater impairment than those with either disorder alone, making them a particularly vulnerable population in need of effective treatment.2 Although a strong evidence base supports the efficacy of cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT) for treating anxiety in children,3 there is little information to guide practitioners on how to best treat those dually diagnosed with an AD and ADHD. Questions have arisen as to whether the cognitive, attentional, and behavioral impairments associated with ADHD interfere with the ability of these children to benefit from CBT for anxiety.4 Does the distractibility and overactivity characteristic of ADHD inhibit, perhaps differentially, the ability of these children to effectively engage in CBT for anxiety (e.g., psychoeducation, cognitive restructuring, therapeutic exposure)?

Predictors and moderators of treatment response in childhood anxiety disorders: results from the CAMS trial.

OBJECTIVE: We sought to examine predictors and moderators of treatment outcomes among 488 youths ages 7-17 years (50% female; 74% ≤ 12 years) meeting Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (4th ed., text rev.; American Psychiatric Association, 2000) criteria for diagnoses of separation anxiety disorder, social phobia, or generalized anxiety disorder who were randomly assigned to receive either cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT), sertraline (SRT), their combination (COMB), or medication management with pill placebo (PBO) in the Child/Adolescent Anxiety Multimodal Study (CAMS). METHOD: Six classes of predictor and moderator variables (22 variables) were identified from the literature and examined using continuous (Pediatric Anxiety Ratings Scale; PARS) and categorical (Clinical Global Impression Scale-Improvement; CGI-I) outcome measures. RESULTS: Three baseline variables predicted better outcomes (independent of treatment condition) on the PARS, including low anxiety severity (as measured by parents and independent evaluators) and caregiver strain. No baseline variables were found to predict Week 12 responder status (CGI-I). Participants' principal diagnosis moderated treatment outcomes but only on the PARS. No baseline variables were found to moderate treatment outcomes on Week 12 responder status (CGI-I). DISCUSSION: Overall, anxious children responded favorably to CAMS treatments. However, having more severe and impairing anxiety, greater caregiver strain, and a principal diagnosis of social phobia were associated with less favorable outcomes. Clinical implications of these findings are discussed.

Therapist Factors and Outcomes in CBT for Anxiety in Youth.

This study examined the relationship between therapist factors and child outcomes in anxious youth who received cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT) as part of the Child-Adolescent Anxiety Multimodal Study (CAMS). Of the 488 youth who participated in the CAMS project, 279 were randomly assigned to one of the CBT conditions (CBT only or CBT plus sertraline). Participants included youth (ages 7-17; M = 10.76) who met criteria for a principal anxiety disorder. Therapists included 38 cognitive-behavioral therapists. Therapist style, treatment integrity, and therapist experience were examined in relation to child outcome. Child outcome was measured via child, parent, and independent evaluator report. Therapists who were more collaborative and empathic, followed the treatment manual, and implemented it in a developmentally appropriate way had youth with better treatment outcomes. Therapist "coach" style was a significant predictor of child-reported outcome, with the collaborative "coach" style predicting fewer child-reported symptoms. Higher levels of therapist prior clinical experience and lower levels of prior anxiety-specific experience were significant predictors of better treatment outcome. Findings suggest that although all therapists used the same manual-guided treatment, therapist style, experience, and clinical skills were related to differences in child outcome. Clinical implications and recommendations for future research are discussed.