News #ECTRIMS2016 – Children with MS at Considerable Risk of Psychiatric Disorders #ECTRIMS2016 – Children with MS at Considerable Risk of Psychiatric Disorders by Patricia Silva, PhD | September 15, 2016 Share this article: Share article via email Copy article link Children with multiple sclerosis (MS) or other demyelinating conditions experience psychiatric disorders more often than other kids, andĀ Ā mental health professionals need to be involved early in their care so that those with theseĀ disorders are identified and treated early, a new study reported. Data from the study, āRisks of psychiatric disorders in children and young adults with demyelinating diseases of the central nervous system: a national record-linkage study,ā were presented at the European Committee for Treatment and Research in Multiple Sclerosis (ECTRIMS) 2016 Congress in London, runningĀ Sept. 14ā17, asĀ part of the Young Scientific Investigatorsā Session 2 on the first day of the congress. As children withĀ MS developĀ brain inflammation and damage at a stage in life when the brain is still developing, they are at risk of developing psychiatric disorders as well. AĀ research team from the University of Oxford used English hospital episode statistics to identify children and adolescents with MS. The team analyzed records of 201 pediatric MS patients, and an additional 1,097 records of young patients with other demyelinating diseases. ResearchersĀ also included more than 1.1 million children without these diseases as controls. Results showed that children with all forms of demyelinating disease were about 5.8 times more likely to developĀ a psychotic disorder. The risk was also increased by 2.4 times for anxiety, stress-related and somatoform disorders; 6.6 times for intellectual disability; and 9 times for behavioral disorders. The risk to develop any of the studied psychiatric conditions was increased 1.6 times. When the teamĀ analyzed only thoseĀ childrenĀ who had goneĀ at least one yearĀ since aĀ first neurological and psychiatric episode, risks were still elevated. Raising the interval to five years, the team could still see elevated risks for psychotic disorders, intellectual disability, and other behavioral conditions. Looking only at the children with MS, the risk for psychosis was even higher ā 10.76 times that of healthy children. MS kids also had a 2.6 times increased risk for mood disorders, and a 6.1 times increased risk for intellectual disability. Reversing the analysis, that is, exploring whether the presence of a psychiatric disease affected the risk of MS or other demyelinating conditions, researchers found that anxiety, stress-related and somatoform disorders, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), autism, intellectual disability, and other behavioral disorders increased the risk for neurological disease. “This population-based study reports strong evidence for an association between paediatric CNS [central nervous system] demyelinating diseases and psychiatric disorders. We highlight a need for early involvement of mental health professionals as part of a multi-disciplinary care approach,” the authors concluded in their ECTRIMS’Ā abstract. Print This Page About the Author Patricia Silva, PhD PatrĆcia holds a PhD in medical microbiology and infectious diseases from the Leiden University Medical Center, Netherlands, and completed a postdoctoral research fellowship at the Instituto de Medicina Molecular, Lisbon, Portugal. Her work in academia was mainly focused on molecular biology and the genetic traits of infectious agents such as viruses and parasites. PatrĆcia earned several travel awards to present her work at international scientific meetings. She is a published author of several peer-reviewed science articles. Tags ECTRIMS2016, mood disorders, risk
April 19, 2024 News by Lindsey Shapiro, PhD AAN 2024: Long-term data support early Kesimpta start in relapsing MS
April 18, 2024 Columns by Benjamin Hofmeister Learning how to write a ‘SOAP’ note feels different after an MS diagnosis
April 18, 2024 News by Marisa Wexler, MS AAN 2024: Sustained myelin, nerve cell gains with long-term CNM-Au8