Viruses, neurodevelopmental disorder and childhood psychosis

Perinatal complications as predictors of infantile autism

This study investigated the relationship between reported perinatal complications and autism. The biological mothers of 183 autistic children and 209 normals completed the Maternal Perinatal Scale (MPS), a maternal self-report that surveys complications of pregnancies and medical conditions of the mother. Previous research in this area has been limited, with no definitive conclusions. A discriminant analysis was performed to consider perinatal complications as predictors between the autistic and normal subjects. Using the MPS, 65% of the autistic cases were correctly grouped. The results further indicated significant differences on 3 of the 10 factors of the MPS, in particular, Gestational Age, Maternal Morphology, and Intrauterine Stress. When considered in an item by item fashion, 5 items were found to significantly predict group membership (prescriptions taken during pregnancy, length of labor, viral infection, abnormal presentation at delivery, and low birth weight). Finally, 3 maternal medical conditions were found to be highly significant and contribute to the separation between groups, including urinary infection, high temperatures, and depression.

Paranoid psychosis in an 11-year-old boy following cardiac transplantation

This is the first reported case of psychotic illness following pediatric cardiac transplantation. The case highlights diagnostic issues, and indicates a need for monitoring the psychological effects of cardiac transplantation in children.

Prader-Willi syndrome and acute psychosis

Prader-Willi Syndrome (PWS) is a genetically determined disorder, with characteristic physical and behavioural phenotypes. We describe a girl with PWS who developed a psychotic illness, and summarize the course, treatment and outcome. We suggest that the development of a psychotic illness in PWS may be an association of disorders that paediatricians and child mental health professionals should be aware of, and that the cornerstone of management of this kind of case is a multi-professional interdisciplinary approach. Important aspects of the assessment process which are occasionally overlooked are discussed.

Season of birth in infantile autism and other types of childhood psychoses

Season of birth in 328 children with infantile autism and other types of childhood psychoses born between 1945 and 1980 was compared with that of a control population born in the same period. For some parts of the period (the years 1951-56, 1963-68 and 1975-80 combined) an excess of March born boys with infantile autism was found. For boys with autistic-like disorders, born in the same period a maximum occurred in November, while no seasonality was observed for a borderline sample.

Season of birth and neurodevelopmental disorders: summer birth is associated with dyslexia

OBJECTIVE

Increased risk for certain psychiatric disorders has been associated with season of birth. This study was undertaken to look for hypothesized season-of-birth effects for dyslexia, schizophrenia spectrum disorders, and neurological soft signs in children and adolescents.

METHOD

Month of birth and the diagnostic findings in question were examined based on charts from a clinic population of 585 boys. Odds ratios and etiological fractions were calculated.

RESULTS

Neurological soft signs showed a sporadic peak for June births and schizophrenia spectrum showed a peak for August and November. A smooth curve suggesting true seasonality was evident in dyslexia for births in May, June, and July. For different 5-year birth cohorts, early summer birth accounts for 24 to 71% of cases of dyslexia.

CONCLUSIONS

The authors suggest that viral infection, especially influenza, during the second trimester of pregnancy is the most attractive hypothesis to explain these findings. If this hypothesis is supported, immunization in women of child-bearing age could reduce the incidence of dyslexia. Secondary prevention could also be enhanced by early identification and treatment of children who were exposed in utero.

Season of birth and childhood psychosis

This paper reports a test of the hypothesis that winter birth is a risk factor for childhood psychosis. All psychotic children (n = 208) admitted to a day-treatment facility in Paris from 1960 through to 1986 were compared with 1040 controls matched by sex and year of birth. Risk ratio estimates were computed for each month, and a significant increase was observed for boys born in December. This association was stronger in some years than in others. The fact that there were no excesses in contiguous months detracts from the persuasiveness of this association.

Pre-pubertal depressive stupor: a case report

A case of childhood affective disorder with episodes of depressive stupor in a 13-year-old pre-pubertal boy is described. Changes in the patient's clinical state were accompanied by changes in the dexamethasone suppression test. A family history of affective illness on the maternal side, with phenomenological similarities, is noted.

Post-influenzal psychiatric disorder in adolescents

The association between influenza and psychiatric disorder in adolescents was studied at a time when both were highly prevalent concurrently. First 505 secondary school pupils aged 15-18 completed questionnaires, including a symptom inventory derived from the SCL-90-R. Subsequently, 113 blood samples were examined for influenza antibody titers of five virus strains. Statistical analysis showed that adolescents who had been ill with influenza in the previous six months had significantly more psychiatric disorder than those who had not been ill with influenza in that period.