Depressive comorbidity in children and adolescents: empirical, theoretical, and methodological issues.
Published
Journal Article (Review)
OBJECTIVE: The purpose of the study was to examine comorbidity in the context of child and adolescent depression. METHOD: The authors reviewed recent epidemiological studies using standardized interviews and DSM-III or DSM-III-R criteria. RESULTS: There was a high rate of comorbidity in children and adolescents with major depressive disorders or dysthymia. Comorbidity with conduct disorder/oppositional defiant disorder ranged from 21% to 83%; comorbidity with anxiety disorder ranged from 30% to 75%; and comorbidity with attention deficit disorder ranged from 0% to 57.1%. Rates of depressive comorbidity found in community studies were similar to the rates found in clinical studies. In almost all cases, the disorders were more common in depressed children than expected by chance, and the rates of other disorders in depressed children were higher than the rates of depression in those with depression. CONCLUSIONS: The mechanisms by which comorbidity occurs are obscure at present. Several possibilities and their implications for nosology, epidemiology, and treatment research are discussed.
Full Text
Duke Authors
Cited Authors
- Angold, A; Costello, EJ
Published Date
- December 1993
Published In
Volume / Issue
- 150 / 12
Start / End Page
- 1779 - 1791
PubMed ID
- 8238631
Pubmed Central ID
- 8238631
International Standard Serial Number (ISSN)
- 0002-953X
Digital Object Identifier (DOI)
- 10.1176/ajp.150.12.1779
Language
- eng
Conference Location
- United States