[Sertraline in child and adolescent psychiatry]. / Primenenie sertralina v detskoi i podrostkovoi psikhiatrii.

The aim of the study was to research the efficiency of sertraline (zoloft) in depressions, anxious states and obsessive-compulsive disorders. Diagnosis of the mental disorders was carried out according to ICD-10. 72 children (59 boys, 13 girls) aged 6-18 years were treated. There were 32 inpatients and 40 outpatients. Therapy with sertraline was performed during 8 weeks with a gradual increase (titration) and individual selection of the dose from 12.5 to 100 mg/day. During the therapy clinical observation was combined with the patients' examination using Hamilton Depression Scale and Hamilton Anxiety Scale (HAM-D and HAM-A), and a Clinical Global Impression Scale (CGI). It was established that sertraline was very effective and safe drug in children (it has no influence on cognitive functions, has neither myorelaxing or sedative effects). Activity of this drug is characterized by quick manifestation of thymoanaleptic and anxiolytic effects. It mild depressive states 50 mg/day is a significant dose; in more severe depressions and obsessive-compulsive disorders the dose in juveniles was to 100 mg, the duration of the therapy was more than 2 months.

[An epidemiological method for studying the effect of elevated background radiation on the neuropsychic health of children]. / Izuchenie épidemiologicheskim metodom vliianiia povyshennogo radiatsionnogo fona na nervno-psikhicheskoe zdorov'e detei.

The children living in 4 regions of Russia contaminated as a result of the Chernobyl catastrophe were investigated. The control group consisted of the children of 2 regions which did not undergo this influence. The investigations were made 1-3 years after the catastrophe took place. An increase of etiologically non-clear asthenic-vegetative disorders was determined in the regions of radiation contamination. They were observed mainly among the children who had light residual organic cerebral deficiency. The authors cannot exclude the impact of the psychogenic factors.

[Psychopath-like equivalents of depression in children and adolescents]. / Psikhopatopodobnye ékvivalenty depressii u detei i podrostkov.

Psychopathlike equivalents of depression in 56 patients aged 10 to 16 years are described. Schizophrenics (50) made up the main group of clinical observations while in six cases, the diagnosis of psychopathlike equivalents of depression associated with diseases of residual-organic nature was made. Individual typical variants of psychopathlike equivalents of depression are described; their psychopathological structure was shown to be dependent on the character of affective disturbances and also on such factors as age-associated and individual reactivity.

[Effect of the acceleration factor on formation of the clinical picture of schizophrenia in adolescents]. / O vliianii faktora akseleratsii na formirovanie klinicheskoi kartiny shizofrenii u podrostkov.

A comparitive clinico-psychopathological study in 275 cases of schizophrenia in adolescent boys with different variants of sex maturation (accelerated, retarded and normal) demonstrated significant differences in the clinical picture and development of schizophrenia depending upon the physical and in particularly the sex maturation. The authors come to the conclusion of a modifying influence of maturation on the formation of the clinical picture and development of schizophrenia in this age period. At the same time acceleration of maturation is not considered as an unconditioned unfavourable prognostical sign.

[Pathomorphosis of schizophrenia in children and adolescents]. / O patomorfoze shizofrenii u detei i podrostkov.

In order to study the pathomorphosis of schizophrenia in children and adolescents the authors accomplished a comparative study of 2 groups of patients, first admitted to hospitals during 1948-1952 and in 1970-1972. It was established that during the past 20 years the clinical picture of schizophrenia had undergone significant changes, related mainly to the acuity of the debut, degree of progressivity of the process, as well as to the traits of the psychopathological picture of the disease.