ABSTRACT
Despite increasing attention to psychiatric disorders in the mentally retarded, suicidal behavior remains an underreported phenomenon in this population, particularly in children and adolescents. This study was aimed at documenting the existence of suicidal behavior among 90 consecutive admissions to a specialty unit for dually diagnosed children and adolescents in a medical school-affiliated children's psychiatric hospital. Archival chart review yielded a total of 19 patients, or 21%, for whom suicidal behavior was a presenting complaint upon admission or during hospitalization. Suicidality was distributed across gender, level of mental retardation, and psychiatric diagnosis. Additional findings of note with regard to family dysfunction and/or abuse history are summarized. Clearly, in this sample, children and adolescents with mental retardation were capable of formulating and engaging in potentially fatal acts. Results of this study suggest that suicidal behavior is an underrecognized, yet significant phenomenon in children and adolescents with mental retardation and psychiatric disorder.
Subject(s)
Intellectual Disability/epidemiology , Suicide, Attempted/statistics & numerical data , Adolescent , Adult , Child , Child Abuse/prevention & control , Child Abuse/psychology , Child Abuse/statistics & numerical data , Cross-Sectional Studies , Diagnosis, Dual (Psychiatry) , Family/psychology , Female , Humans , Incidence , Intellectual Disability/psychology , Intellectual Disability/rehabilitation , Male , Patient Admission/statistics & numerical data , Rhode Island/epidemiology , Suicide, Attempted/prevention & control , Suicide, Attempted/psychologyABSTRACT
Three mildly malnourished children with cystic fibrosis and their parents participated in a behavioral group-treatment program that focused on promoting and maintaining increased calorie consumption. Treatment included nutritional education, gradually increasing calorie goals, contingency management, and relaxation training, and was evaluated in a multiple baseline design across four meals. Children's calorie intake increased across meals, and total calorie intake was 32% to 60% above baseline at posttreatment. Increased calorie consumption was maintained at the 96-week follow-up (2 years posttreatment). The children's growth rates in weight and height were greater during the 2 years following treatment than the year prior to treatment. Increases in pace of eating and calories consumed per minute were also observed 1 year posttreatment. These findings replicated and extended earlier research supporting the efficacy of behavioral intervention in the treatment of malnutrition in children with cystic fibrosis.
Subject(s)
Behavior Therapy , Cystic Fibrosis/therapy , Energy Intake , Feeding and Eating Disorders/therapy , Parents/education , Protein-Energy Malnutrition/therapy , Psychotherapy, Group , Body Weight , Child , Child, Preschool , Cystic Fibrosis/psychology , Feeding Behavior , Feeding and Eating Disorders/psychology , Female , Follow-Up Studies , Humans , Lung Volume Measurements , Male , Protein-Energy Malnutrition/psychologyABSTRACT
Examined the effects of the type of value appealed to and valence of appeal on children's intentions to engage in toothbrushing, their self-report of toothbrushing frequency, and their plaque level. 98 fifth-grade students served as the participants. Slide shows appealed to either health- or socially oriented values and also differed with respect to valence (positive vs. negative). A control group received a message that provided basic dental health information. Group comparisons revealed that children who received the negative social appeal showed a significant improvement in plaque level. Only the negative social appeal group differed significantly from the control group on the dependent measures.
