Biomedical subjects

Anne Mette Skovgaard

Publications and source records attributed to Anne Mette Skovgaard.

6 recordsLinked to original sources

PubMed2005

The Copenhagen County child cohort: design of a longitudinal study of child mental health.

BACKGROUND: Epidemiological studies of psychopathology in the first years of life are few, and the association between mental health problems in infancy and psychiatric disturbances later in life has not been systematically investigated. The aim of the present project was to study mental health problems and possibilities of intervention from infancy and onward. METHODS: The basic study population consists of a birth cohort of 6,090 children born in the year 2000 in the County of Copenhagen, the Copenhagen County Child Cohort, CCCC 2000. At stage one CCCC 2000 was established on data from the Civil Registration System, Danish national registers, and standardized, longitudinal data from the first year of living obtained by public health nurses. At stage two a subsample was assessed at 1(1/2) years of age concerning child psychiatric illness and associated factors in a case-control study nested in the cohort, including a random sample. Participation rate at stage one was 92%. PERSPECTIVES: Ongoing studies of CCCC 2000 include studies of failure to thrive, register studies, and studies of the predictive validity of public health screening. A follow-up study concerning the prevalence of psychopathology at age 5 is planned. SUMMARY: The Copenhagen County Child Cohort CCCC 2000 is a longitudinal study of mental health from infancy investigating psychopathology in early childhood. Results from this study will add to the knowledge of risk factors and course of mental health problems in childhood and contribute to the validation of the mental health screening made by public health nurses.

Adolescent↗

PubMed2002

[Suicidal behavior in children--a descriptive study].

INTRODUCTION: Psychiatric illness and suicide attempts are important risk factors for suicide in young people. To what extent suicidal behaviour in childhood predicts suicidal behaviour and suicide later in life is not known, and studies concerning suicidal behaviour and psychopathology in children are limited. The objective of the study was to describe suicidal behaviour in children referred to child psychiatric assessment concerning the frequency and characteristics of the suicidal behaviour and the psychiatric diagnoses of the children. MATERIAL AND METHODS: Children under the age of 15 from the County of Copenhagen referred to child psychiatric ward because of suicidal behaviour. The period studied was January 1st 1998 to December 31st 2000. Data regarding the children were collected from a clinical database and medical records. Children seen at other wards by child psychiatric consultants have not been included in the descriptive part of the study. RESULTS: The incidence of referred children corresponds to a rate of suicidal behaviour of 63.0 per 100,000. A total of 126 children were referred. 62 were patients in a child psychiatric ward. Among these, 97% were diagnosed as having psychiatric problems. Children with suicidal risk made out 6% of all referred children. The ratio of boys to girls was 53:73. Most of the girls were aged 13-14 and the boys 8-12. Seven boys suffered from psychoses and pervasive developmental disorders, the rest of the boys from attention deficit and hyperactivity disorders and mixed disorders of conduct and emotions. The oldest girls were suffering from personality disorders. Poisoning was common among the girls and more violent self-destructive acts characterized the suicidal behaviour of the boys. DISCUSSION: Suicidal behaviour was associated with psychopathology in most children referred. Serious psychiatric disturbances as psychotic disorders were found in boys as young as seven years of age, and personality disorders were most common in the girls. Sex differences in suicidal behaviour known from studies of adolescents and adult people seem to be manifested early in childhood. PERSPECTIVES: Prospective studies are needed to clarify the association of psychopathology and suicidal behaviour in childhood and later suicidal behaviour and suicide.

Adolescent↗

PubMed2002

[Psychosomatic failure-to-thrive in infants and toddlers].

Failure to thrive is found in 3-5% of infants in the general population. A minority has an organic explanation. Non-organic failure to thrive is associated with increased risk of physical illness, continued growth retardation as well as cognitive and emotional disturbances. Non-organic failure to thrive has traditionally been regarded as a maternal deprivation syndrome, but in recent population studies there has been found no evidence of mother-infant relationship disturbances as the main cause of non-organic failure to thrive is the general population. Non-organic failure to thrive is best characterised as a psychosomatic condition with multifactorial etiology. Development and course of failure to thrive has to be explored in longitudinal population studies with prospectively gathered data concerning the perinatal period and first year of life.

Failure to Thrive↗

PubMed2002

[Failure to thrive among hospitalized 0-2 year-old children].

INTRODUCTION: Failure to thrive, defined as insufficient weight gain according to age, is a well-known condition among infants and toddlers. The aim of the study was to investigate the prevalence of diagnosed failure to thrive and possible comorbidity in hospitalised 0-2 year-old children in the County of Copenhagen. MATERIAL AND METHODS: It resulted from inquiries sent to all paediatric departments in Denmark that the most frequently used ICD-10 diagnoses for failure to thrive were R62.8, E64.9, and E34.3. Data concerning patients with these three diagnoses hospitalised in two paediatric departments in the County of Copenhagen during a two-year period were drawn from the Patient Registry System. The following parameters were registered: sex, age, diagnoses, hospitalizations, and address. RESULTS: Among referred children below the age of two years, 173 or 4% were diagnosed with failure to thrive. Girls were in excess, the ratio girls-boys being 107:66. More than half, 60% were below one year of age, 40% were below six months of age. We found equal distribution of index children from municipalities with low and high incomes. The diagnosis R62.8 was found in 170 patients, of whom 155 had the diagnosis as either main diagnosis or side diagnosis. Out of these 155 patients 46% had additional somatic diagnosis, whereas 5% had child psychiatric comorbidity. DISCUSSION: Failure to thrive was diagnosed in 4% of hospitalised children under two years of age. Nearly half of the children diagnosed with failure to thrive had a comorbid somatic diagnosis, whereas only a few was diagnosed with psychiatric or social disturbances.

Child↗

PubMed2002

[Children aged 0-3 years referred to child psychiatric department. A descriptive epidemiological study].

INTRODUCTION: In a Danish register study the incidence of children aged 0-3 years referred to child psychiatric services in Denmark increased by 30% during 1996-1998. The objective of this study was to further describe 0-3 year-old children referred to child psychiatric departments with a view to distribution of diagnoses, age, sex, and parental mental illness. MATERIAL AND METHODS: Children 0-3 years of age referred to child psychiatric departments in the County of Copenhagen in 1998 and 1999 were described on the basis of the clinical database and hospital records. RESULTS: A total of 159 children were admitted over a two-year period corresponding to an incidence of 0.4%. The ratio boys: girls were 1.3:1. However, with regard to pervasive developmental disorders boys dominated 6:1. Among girls, eating disorders were dominating in the youngest children with ratio girls: boys 5:2. Pervasive developmental disorders were the most common diagnoses in children aged 2-3 years, and the overall incidence of this diagnosis was 0.25 per 1000 per year. The most common diagnosis of the youngest children was Z-diagnoses, and most often these children had mentally ill parents. Attachment disorders, eating disorders, and adjustment reactions were common diagnoses in children with mentally ill parents, but more than half of these children did not have any diagnosis at all. DISCUSSION: The incidence of children with pervasive developmental disorder was found twice as high as observed in a register study covering referrals of children aged 0-3 years from all psychiatric departments in Denmark during 1996-1998. Reactive attachment disorder, eating and adjustment disorder, and Z-diagnosis are the most common diagnoses in the youngest children, and most often these children have mentally ill parents.

Child Development Disorders, Pervasive↗

PubMedDate not supplied

The growth pattern of 0-1-year-old Danish children, when screened by public health nurses--the Copenhagen County Child Cohort 2000.

BACKGROUND: Using inadequate growth references when screening child health could lead to false conclusions concerning individual growth. We were concerned that this might apply to the official Danish growth reference. AIM: The study aimed to describe the current growth pattern of 0-1-year-old children in Denmark and compare it with national and international references, especially concerning differences that might cause misclassification regarding growth. SUBJECTS AND METHODS: The study population comprised the Copenhagen County Child Cohort 2000 (CCCC2000) birth cohort, which consisted of 6090 children born during the year 2000. Weight and length measurements were obtained from the National Birth Registry and from standardized records of public health nurses. Anthropometric measurements were available from 99% of the birth cohort. Growth curves were constructed using Cole's LMS method. The curves were compared with Danish and international references, including the NCHS, the CDC and the Euro Growth references. RESULTS: The CCCC2000 curves differed from all the chosen references. The CCCC2000 children were heavier and longer and with a substantially higher weight-for-age gain between 1 and 6 months. Shape-wise, the CCCC2000 weight curves resemble the new Euro Growth reference. CONCLUSIONS: The degree of differences concerning weight curves is large enough to cause misclassification and there seems to be a need for updated growth curves concerning infancy.

Body Height↗