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Biomedical subjects

E B Weller

Publications and source records attributed to E B Weller.

60 records · Page 4Linked to original sources
PubMed1982

Depression in children: relationship between plasma imipramine levels and response.

The effects of imipramine treatment and plasma drug levels were studied in 20 prepubertal children (16 males, 4 females; age range 7-12 years) hospitalized for major depressive disorder (DSM-III criteria). No change in symptomatology was seen after 2 weeks of individual/group/family psychotherapy, but 12 children experienced a remission within 6 weeks of beginning imipramine. Response to the drug was concentration-dependent; of the children who achieved total tricyclic (imipramine plus desipramine) plasma levels of 125-225 ng/ml, 92% responded, compared with 25% of those outside this range. Antidepressant response was correlated both with total tricyclic plasma levels and with plasma desipramine levels (r = 0.72 and 0.56, respectively), but not with plasma levels of imipramine alone.

Age Factors↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Mania in prepubertal children: has it been underdiagnosed?

Prior to the introduction of lithium, mania was underdiagnosed in the U.S.A. Almost 50% of adults who met DSM-III criteria for mania had previously been diagnosed to have schizophrenia. To determine if mania had similarly been underdiagnosed in prepubertal children, 157 cases of 'severely disturbed' children described in the literature were reviewed. Approximately one-half (16/33) of the children diagnosed in this study as manic according to DSM-III had originally received another diagnosis. These results indicate that mania should be considered in the differential diagnosis of psychotic children, particularly those with affective symptoms.

Bipolar Disorder↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Self-report vs. biological markers in assessment of childhood depression.

Sensitivity, specificity, and diagnostic confidence of the Children's Depression Inventory (CDI) and the dexamethasone suppression test (DST) in assessing childhood depression were determined. Parent and child forms of the CDI and plasma cortisol levels at 8 a.m. and 4 p.m. were used. Three groups of prepubertal children were sampled: (1) 63 depressed inpatients, (2) 14 non-depressed inpatient psychiatric controls, and (3) 21 normal community sample controls. Results suggest that scores greater than or equal to 15 on the CDI obtained from either parent or child provide a good screening instrument (sensitivity = 89%). If the DST is administered to all children with elevated CDI scores, diagnostic confidence is 97.5%. Cautions and recommendations for use of the CDI and DST are made.

Child↗