Early predictors of behavioural problems in pre-schoolers - a longitudinal study of constitutional and environmental main and interaction effects

N-Cadherin Regulates GluA1-Mediated Depressive-Like Behavior in Adolescent Female Rat Offspring following Prenatal Stress

BACKGROUND

The incidence of depression is twice higher in women than in men, and gender differences in the prevalence rates first emerge around puberty. Prenatal stress (PS) induces gender-dependent depressive-like behavior in adolescent offspring, but the neuro-physiological mechanisms remain unclear. Our study aimed to investigate the possible neuro-physiological mechanisms of gender-dependent depressive-like behavior in PS adolescent offspring and further explored the possibility of treating depression in adolescent female rats.

METHODS

The pregnant rats were exposed to restraint stress in the third trimester for 7 days. The depressive-like behavior and the expression of N-cadherin and AMPARs in the hippocampus of adolescent offspring rats were assessed. 10 mg/kg AMPAR antagonist CNQX and 10 mg/kg N-cadherin antagonist ADH-1 were intraperitoneally injected into female adolescent offspring, respectively; 0.2 µg AMPAR agonist CX546 was administered to the dentate gyrus of male adolescent offspring to determine the role of N-cadherin-AMPARs in depressive-like behavior of the offspring following PS.

RESULTS

We found that PS increased N-cadherin expression, which upregulated GluA1 expression in the dentate gyrus, mediating depressive-like behavior in adolescent female rat offspring by reducing PSD-95. In addition, ADH-1 and CNQX improved depressive-like behavior in adolescent female offspring following PS. Furthermore, injection of the CX546 into the dentate gyrus induced depressive-like behavior in PS male offspring.

CONCLUSION

The gender-dependent expression of N-cadherin-GluA1 pathway in adolescent offspring in the dentate gyrus was the key factor in gender differences of depressive-like behavior following PS.

Effects of postpartum depression on the behaviour of children born to mothers with epilepsy

PURPOSE

Postpartum depression (PPD) is a non-psychotic depressive disorder that begins within 4 weeks of childbirth. This study aimed to evaluate the prevalence of PPD by screening mothers with the Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale (EPDS), to assess the behavioural outcome of children born to mothers with and without epilepsy and to investigate the relationship between PPD and children's behavioural problems.

METHOD

We enrolled 80 pregnancies of women with epilepsy, who filled in EPDS after birth, and afterward we asked them to complete the Child Behavior Checklist (CBCL).

RESULTS

23.8% of patients presented PPD. Children, when the CBCL were completed, had a mean age of 6.05 ± 3.07 years. The CBCL results indicate the occurrence of at least one behavioural issue in 25.0% (20/80) of children. CBCL scores revealed a higher prevalence of behavioural disturbances with regards to the CBCL Total (P = 0.016), internalizing (P = 0.014) and somatic problems (P = 0.048) in patients with PPD vs. patients without PPD. We found an association between mothers' EPDS total score and children's CBCL global score (P = 0.034), internalizing score (P = 0.021), anxiety problems (P = 0.05), affective problems (P = 0.027) and withdrawn/depressed (P = 0.05). We recorded a statistically higher malformation rate in patients with PPD (P = 0.005) compared to the general population.

CONCLUSIONS

Children born from mothers with epilepsy have an increased risk for emotional disorders. These findings highlight the importance of screening for emotional distress and providing adequate interventions to children born to women with epilepsy.

Maternal Prenatal Stress and Other Developmental Risk Factors for Adolescent Depression: Spotlight on Sex Differences

Maternal stress during pregnancy has been linked to premorbid abnormalities associated with depression (e.g., difficult temperament, cognitive deficits) in offspring. However, few studies have looked across developmental periods to examine maternal stress during pregnancy and offspring depression during adolescence and whether these associations differ by sex. The current study used data from 1711 mother-offspring dyads (offspring sex: 49.8% male) in a longitudinal birth cohort study. Maternal narratives collected during pregnancy were qualitatively coded for stress-related themes by independent raters. Latent class analysis (LCA) identified distinct subgroups of offspring based on exposure to maternal prenatal stress and other developmental factors from the prenatal, childhood, and adolescent periods that have been associated with depression and/or maternal prenatal stress. LCA identified subgroups that were compared to determine whether and to what extent they differed on adolescent depressive symptoms. LCA revealed a subgroup of "high-risk" individuals, characterized by maternal factors during pregnancy (higher ambivalence/negativity and lower positivity towards the pregnancy, higher levels of hassles, lower maternal education and higher maternal age at birth, higher pre-pregnancy BMI) and offspring developmental factors (decreased cognitive functioning during childhood and adolescence, lower perceived parental support during adolescence, and higher levels of maternal depression during adolescence). High-risk females exhibited elevated conduct symptoms and higher birth order, while high-risk males exhibited decreased internalizing symptoms and lower birth order. Both high-risk males and females reported elevated depressive symptoms during adolescence relative to their "low-risk" counterparts.

Influence of maternal psychological traits on sleep bruxism in children

BACKGROUND

Sleep bruxism (SB) is a sleep disorder with high incidence in toddlers and may perpetuate to adulthood. The multifactorial etiology of bruxism includes pathophysiologic and psychological factors.

AIM

To investigate the relationship between depression, stressful events, and the presence of symptoms of anxiety and depression with SB in children of adolescent mothers.

DESIGN

This cross-sectional study nested in a cohort evaluated a sample of 536 mothers and their children aged 24-36 months. Interviews were conducted with mothers. Maternal report of SB was collected. Mother's major depressive disorder was assessed using the Mini International Neuropsychiatric Interview (MINI Plus); Life Events Scale assessed the stressful events; Beck Depression Inventory and Beck Anxiety Inventory investigated the symptoms of depression and anxiety. Poisson regression analysis was applied to assess the association of maternal psychological disorders and stressful events with SB on children.

RESULTS

Prevalence of SB was 25.93% (95% CI 22.2-29.7). After adjustments, maternal major depression disorder [PR 1.43 (95% CI 1.06-1.92)] and the presence of stressful events mainly environmental changes [PR 1.47 (95% CI 1.08-2.00)] showed significant association with bruxism in children.

CONCLUSION

This study showed a positive association between mother's psychological traits and SB development in their toddlers.

Associations between social vulnerabilities and psychosocial problems in European children. Results from the IDEFICS study

The effect of socioeconomic inequalities on children's mental health remains unclear. This study aims to explore the cross-sectional and longitudinal associations between social vulnerabilities and psychosocial problems, and the association between accumulation of vulnerabilities and psychosocial problems. 5987 children aged 2-9 years from eight European countries were assessed at baseline and 2-year follow-up. Two different instruments were employed to assess children's psychosocial problems: the KINDL (Questionnaire for Measuring Health-Related Quality of Life in Children and Adolescents) was used to evaluate children's well-being and the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ) was used to evaluate children's internalising problems. Vulnerable groups were defined as follows: children whose parents had minimal social networks, children from non-traditional families, children of migrant origin or children with unemployed parents. Logistic mixed-effects models were used to assess the associations between social vulnerabilities and psychosocial problems. After adjusting for classical socioeconomic and lifestyle indicators, children whose parents had minimal social networks were at greater risk of presenting internalising problems at baseline and follow-up (OR 1.53, 99% CI 1.11-2.11). The highest risk for psychosocial problems was found in children whose status changed from traditional families at T0 to non-traditional families at T1 (OR 1.60, 99% CI 1.07-2.39) and whose parents had minimal social networks at both time points (OR 1.97, 99% CI 1.26-3.08). Children with one or more vulnerabilities accumulated were at a higher risk of developing psychosocial problems at baseline and follow-up. Therefore, policy makers should implement measures to strengthen the social support for parents with a minimal social network.

Disruptive Behavior Disorders in Children 0 to 6 Years Old

Disruptive behavior disorders (DBDs), specifically oppositional defiant disorder and conduct disorder, are common, serious, and treatable conditions among preschoolers. DBDs are marked by frequent aggression, deceitfulness, and defiance, and often persist through the lifespan. Exposure to harsh or inconsistent parenting, as frequently seen with parental depression and stress, increases DBD risk. Candidate genes that may increase DBD risk in the presence of childhood adversity have also been identified, but more research is needed. Neurophysiologic and structural correlates with DBD also exist. Parent management training programs, focusing on increasing parenting competence and confidence, are the gold standard treatment of preschool DBDs.

Verhaltens- und emotionale Probleme bei Vorschulkindern im Kontext der Mutter-Kind-Interaktion

Zusammenfassung. Theoretischer Hintergrund: Frühe Interaktionserfahrungen zwischen Eltern und ihren Kindern wirken sich langfristig auf deren psychische Entwicklung aus. Jedoch können verschiedenen psychosoziale Risikofaktoren, insbesondere mütterliche psychische Erkrankungen, die Qualität solcher Interaktionen verändern und sich damit ungünstig auf die psychische Gesundheit von Kindern auswirken. Fragestellung: In der vorliegenden Untersuchung wurde deshalb geprüft, ob sich psychische Probleme von Müttern auf ihr Interaktionsverhalten auswirken und ob dieses wiederum mit Verhaltensproblemen bei Vorschulkindern assoziiert ist. Methode: Es wurden insgesamt 63 Mutter-Kind-Paare untersucht. Die psychische Gesundheit der Mütter wurde mit Hilfe des Brief Symptom Inventory (BSI), Verhaltensprobleme der Kinder mittels der CBCL erfasst. Die Mutter-Kind-Interaktion wurde während einer standardisierten Verhaltensbeobachtung videographiert und von zwei blinden Ratern ausgewertet. Ergebnisse: Multiple Regressionsanalysen zeigen, dass die globale psychische Belastung von Müttern 13 % der Varianz externalisierender und 14.5 % der Varianz internalisierender Symptome bei Vorschulkindern aufklärt. Weiterhin wurde deutlich, dass nur bei den internalisierenden Störungen die Qualität der Mutter-Kind-Interaktion einen Effekt auf die Ausprägung kindlicher Symptome hatte. Außerdem fanden wir einen Mediatoreffekt für mütterliche Intrusivität. Diskussion: Die Befunde der vorliegenden Studie ermöglichen somit ein besseres Verständnis der Entstehung von Verhaltensauffälligkeiten im Vorschulalter, da sie spezifische Interaktionsmerkmale als Risikofaktoren für internalisierende Probleme identifizieren konnten und die Bedeutung der psychischen Gesundheit der Mutter unterstreichen. Daraus kann abgeleitet werden, dass bei einer psychotherapeutischen Behandlung von Vorschulkindern, neben der symptomorientierten Therapie, eine Entlastung der Mütter und eine Verbesserung der Mutter-Kind-Interaktion von großer Relevanz ist.