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Schizophrenia
See Also:
Schizophrenia:
Introduction and Overview
Schizophrenia:
Symptoms
Schizophrenia: Course
Schizophrenia: Types
Schizophrenia:
Causes and Risk Factors
Schizophrenia:
Treatment
Schizophrenia in
Children
Schizophrenia in
Children
Schizophrenia is very rare
in children, affecting only 1 in 40,000 children.
Although, in most cases some of the first signs of
schizophrenia become noticeable after adolescence,
children as young as five can be affected by this
disorder. Due to the fact that such a disorder is so rare
among children, it is very difficult to recognize and
diagnose in its early stages. When a disabling mental
illness like schizophrenia is considered as a possible
diagnosis, specialists pay great attention to the child
developmental stage (some behaviors can be normal among a
certain age group and be abnormal for another), and look
for a persistent pattern of abnormal behaviors such as a
lack of interest in friends, hearing voices that either
talk condescending about the child, or converse with one
another, staring at objects or a creature that does not
exist.
The behavior of a child or
teen that suffers from schizophrenia can differ from the
one displayed by an adult suffering from the same
disorder. However, some of the symptoms displayed by
children are similar to the adult symptom, such as
hallucinations, delusions, social withdrawal, flattened
emotions, loss of social and personal care skills, and
even an increased risk of suicide. Certain symptoms such
as delays in language, motor, and social development, or
behaviors such as rocking, posturing, and arm flapping,
are similar with some of the symptoms displayed by
children with autism or pervasive developmental disorder.
Some of the symptoms
displayed by children with schizophrenia include:
- Seeing and hearing things or sounds that are not
real.
- Displaying an eccentric,odd, or improper behavior
for their age.
- Having unusual, odd, bizarre, or strange ideas
and thoughts.
- Extreme moodiness.
- Confused thinking.
- Severe anxiety and fearfulness.
- Difficulties relating to peers and having
friends.
- Confusing television and dreams from reality.
- Decline in personal hygiene.
- Withdrawn and increased isolation.
- Impaired memory and reasoning.
- Problems paying attention.
- Ideas that people are "out to get them"
or "talk bad about them."
In most cases, these
symptoms infiltrate slowly into the behavior of a child
and the disorder lacks the sudden psychotic episode
usually experienced in most types of schizophrenia cases
that develops in adolescence and young adult years. For
example, a child that enjoys having a friend and spending
time in the company of their peers, becomes more
withdrawn and shy and are drawn into their own world.
Some children start taking about strange ideas and fears
inadequate for their age and that in most cases don't
make sense. If the child attends school, usually the
teachers tend to notice the behavioral changes and
cognitive impairments.
Although, schizophrenia in
children tends to be harder to treat and has a worse
prognosis than adult-onset schizophrenia, clinicians try
to help the young patients with antipsychotic medication,
individual therapy, family therapy, and specialised
programs. An early diagnosis and medication can cause
significant improvements in children with schizophrenia,
however an earlier onset is associated with poor
outcomes.
The data revealing the
efficiency of medication in treating children with
schizophrenia is not sufficient due to the lack of
controlled trials, and the existing information comes
form case reports and small and uncontrolled trials
lacking scientific validity. Based on the existing data,
schizophrenia in children seems to be resistant to
typical antipsychotics. Approximately, 15 to 45 percent
of the children medicated with typical antipsychotic
agents show little or no improvement. However, some of
the atypical psychotic medication such as clozapine and
risperidone showed marginal success in children with
schizophrenia. Unfortunately, children are more
vulnerable than adults to the medication side effects
(weight gain and associated metabolic abnormalities).
See Also:
Schizophrenia:
Introduction and Overview
Schizophrenia:
Symptoms
Schizophrenia: Course
Schizophrenia: Types
Schizophrenia:
Causes and Risk Factors
Schizophrenia:
Treatment
Schizophrenia in
Children
Article by Alina Morrow,
MS Psychology
OmniMedicalSearch.com
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