Evaluation Of Internet-based, Cognitive Behaviour Therapy For The Treatment Of Anxiety Disorders In Adolescents
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$570,750.00
Summary
Anxiety disorders affect around 5-10% of adolescents and are associated with a range of adverse consequences if left untreated. The majority of young people with anxiety disorders do not seek nor receive treatment. This may be due partly to the perceived stigma of attending a mental health clinic and logistic problems of attending therapy. A challenge is to identify ways in which treatment can be made more accessible to adolescents in need, particularly those in rural and remote areas. Contrary ....Anxiety disorders affect around 5-10% of adolescents and are associated with a range of adverse consequences if left untreated. The majority of young people with anxiety disorders do not seek nor receive treatment. This may be due partly to the perceived stigma of attending a mental health clinic and logistic problems of attending therapy. A challenge is to identify ways in which treatment can be made more accessible to adolescents in need, particularly those in rural and remote areas. Contrary to original beliefs, evidence shows that the internet can be used to deliver effective psychological therapies for a range of mental health problems, including anxiety disorders. So far this research has focused on adults, but adolescents may be in a particularly strong position to benefit from these forms of therapy, being experienced users of internet resources. This research investigates the effectiveness of internet-based cognitive-behaviour therapy (CBT) in the treatment for anxiety disorders in adolescents. Recently we have piloted CBT for anxious children that combines clinic and internet therapy, with half the therapy sessions in the clinic and half over the internet. Pilot data show that clinic + internet therapy produced significant reductions in anxiety and is almost as effective full clinic-based therapy. The proposed research builds on our pilot work by evaluating the effectiveness of a more extensive internet-based therapy in which all sessions are completed using the internet and with an older age group. The research also examines the factors that predict which young people will respond most positively to the intervention so that the treatment can be matched to those most likely to benefit from it in the future. The aim is to develop an effective internet-based treatment for adolescents with anxiety disorders that is easily accessed and suitable for use in rural and remote populations, requiring minimal face-to-face therapist contact.Read moreRead less
Does Inpatient Weight Restoration Prior To Outpatient Family Therapy Improve Outcomes In Adolescent Anorexia Nervosa?
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$552,283.00
Summary
This study examines the effect of length of hospital admission for refeeding, prior to manualised outpatient family therapy on outcomes for patients with anorexia nervosa. Subjects will include sixty children and adolescents aged 10 to 18 years admitted to the Children's Hospital at Westmead for medical management of anorexia nervosa. This study aims to randomly allocate and compare outcomes between adolescents with anorexia nervosa admitted for medical stabilisation followed by outpatient famil ....This study examines the effect of length of hospital admission for refeeding, prior to manualised outpatient family therapy on outcomes for patients with anorexia nervosa. Subjects will include sixty children and adolescents aged 10 to 18 years admitted to the Children's Hospital at Westmead for medical management of anorexia nervosa. This study aims to randomly allocate and compare outcomes between adolescents with anorexia nervosa admitted for medical stabilisation followed by outpatient family therapy versus adolescents admitted for full weight restoration followed by outpatient family therapy. Physical and psychological outcomes will be measured at admission to hospital, at the end of the hospital treatment and at the completion of outpatient family therapy and 6 and 12 months after the completion of treatment.Read moreRead less
A Prospective Study Of Concussion In Children And Adolescents: Diagnosis, Recovery And Risk Factors For Poor Outcome.
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$277,000.00
Summary
Concussion is one of the most common neurological injuries and represents a significant public health issue in Australia. The most common consequences of concussive injuries are reduced attention, slowed response speeds and memory impairment. These cognitive processes are critical for performing common day-to-day activities in childhood and adolescence (e.g. acquiring new knowledge and skills, attending to school work). Approximately 20% of concussive injuries occur during participation in organ ....Concussion is one of the most common neurological injuries and represents a significant public health issue in Australia. The most common consequences of concussive injuries are reduced attention, slowed response speeds and memory impairment. These cognitive processes are critical for performing common day-to-day activities in childhood and adolescence (e.g. acquiring new knowledge and skills, attending to school work). Approximately 20% of concussive injuries occur during participation in organised sport. In adult populations, there are now evidence-based guidelines for the diagnosis and management of concussion in sport. Few well-controlled studies exist to identify the frequency and outcome of such injuries in child and adolescent populations, and there are currently no guidelines for diagnosis and management of concussion in children. Further, the academic and social consequence of concussion for the child remains unknown. This study will investigate the cognitive and behavioural outcomes of concussion in young children and adolescents and will use this information to modify and validate currently available adult concussion diagnosis and management paradigms for application with this population. This study will also investigate risk factors for poor outcome following concussion in children and adolescents, and provide age-appropriate data for use in the medical, behavioural and educational management of concussed children and adolescents. A total of 3000 children aged between 10 and 18 years will be recruited to participate in this study. All participants will undergo a baseline evaluation consisting of memory and attention tests, a behavioural rating scale, and measures of educational ability. Participants parents will also provide general health and demographic information. Children who are concussed during the year will be re-assessed within 48 hours of injury and again at 5 days, 10 days and 30 days post-injury to track recovery.Read moreRead less
The Beyondblue Schools Research Initiative: A Two-year Follow-up.
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$827,285.00
Summary
The prevalence of Depressive Disorders among children and adolescents was estimated in the Australian National Child and Adolescent Mental Health Survey to be 3.7%. This means that at any single point of time, approximately 138,000 Australian children and adolescents are experiencing a Depressive Disorder. Furthermore, the National Survey found that less than half (46%) of those with a Depressive Disorder received any help over a 6 month period prior to the survey, with only 8% attending a menta ....The prevalence of Depressive Disorders among children and adolescents was estimated in the Australian National Child and Adolescent Mental Health Survey to be 3.7%. This means that at any single point of time, approximately 138,000 Australian children and adolescents are experiencing a Depressive Disorder. Furthermore, the National Survey found that less than half (46%) of those with a Depressive Disorder received any help over a 6 month period prior to the survey, with only 8% attending a mental health clinic, and only 4% attending a hospital-based Department of Psychiatry. These findings emphasise the importance of finding alternative approaches to help the large number of young people with depression who do not receive help from professional services. This application seeks funding to evaluate the beyondblue Schools Research Initiative. The key features of the initiative are the development of a strong partnership between the health and education sectors and a focus on both individual-level and school-level risk factors. This has enabled us to provide a much longer duration of intervention than previous studies, to test the intervention in several different Australian States, and to utilise a broadly based intervention that includes a range of approaches, each of which have the potential to help reduce adolescent depression. The significance of the project lies in its potential to identify effective interventions which can reduce rates of depression experienced by adolescents, and the quality of the ongoing research partnership we have established across the education and health sectors. We anticipate that this partnership will be utilised for ongoing research in this area.Read moreRead less
Risk Factors For The Development Of Eating Disorder Phenotypes And Endophenotypes In Adolescent Twins
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$266,500.00
Summary
The overall aim of the project is to develop a better understanding of how environment, temperament and genes work together to cause disordered eating and eating disorders. Eating disorders, including anorexia nervosa and bulimia nervosa, are an extremely difficult and costly condition to treat, and are associated with high mortality. Eating disorders in adolescence lead to increased risk for anxiety disorders, chronic fatigue, chronic pain, depressive disorders, infectious diseases, suicide att ....The overall aim of the project is to develop a better understanding of how environment, temperament and genes work together to cause disordered eating and eating disorders. Eating disorders, including anorexia nervosa and bulimia nervosa, are an extremely difficult and costly condition to treat, and are associated with high mortality. Eating disorders in adolescence lead to increased risk for anxiety disorders, chronic fatigue, chronic pain, depressive disorders, infectious diseases, suicide attempts, and limitation in activities due to poor health in adulthood. Full- and partial-syndrome eating disorders affect around 10% of adolescent girls. Given the seriousness of the consequences of eating disorders, and the large number of Australians affected, a better understanding of what causes the development of eating disorders is required. The current research investigates identical and non-identical adolescent female twins aged 13-15 years. As well as examining their eating, this study will look at the sort of environments and temperaments that may increase genetic susceptibility to develop eating problems. The types of environment to be examined include media influence, weight related peer teasing, parental dieting, and pre- and pernatal complications. Twin temperament will also be examined, including perfectionism, sense of ineffectiveness, body dissatisfaction and depression. Parental anxiety and novelty seeking will also be examined for impact on the development of disordered eating in their children. The twins will be followed up over a 2-year period, the peak risk age for onset of eating problems. By comparing the identical and non-identical twins, we can define the characteristics of those most at risk of developing eating problems. The results of this project can be used to formulate specific prevention strategies.Read moreRead less