Gabrielle A Carlson1, Margaret Dyson. 1. Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Stony Brook University School of Medicine, Stony Brook, New York, U.S.A.
Abstract
BACKGROUND: Modest agreement between parent- and teacher-reports of child behavior is a common finding. This study examines diagnoses made when significant disparity occurs in parent- and teacher-reports of rage behaviors. METHODS: Parents and teachers of 911 5-18 year-olds referred for psychiatric outpatient services completed rating scales and received a psychiatric evaluation blind to parent- and teacher-ratings. Children with rage outbursts (n=431, 47.2%) were assessed for diagnosis, family history, and clinical variables. RESULTS: Children were 12.0 (3.6) years; 26.5% were female. Bipolar disorder was rare (11.2%) in this sample; however, in children with parent- and teacher-reported rages, severe mood dysregulation was the most common condition (54.4%). In parent only reported rages, anxiety disorders were most common (40.6%) diagnoses, and in teacher only reported rages, learning/language disorders were the most common (46.0%) diagnoses. CONCLUSION: The context in which a rage outburst occurs may impact the diagnosis; however, diagnosis alone does not explain this difficult and impairing behavior.
BACKGROUND: Modest agreement between parent- and teacher-reports of child behavior is a common finding. This study examines diagnoses made when significant disparity occurs in parent- and teacher-reports of rage behaviors. METHODS: Parents and teachers of 911 5-18 year-olds referred for psychiatricoutpatient services completed rating scales and received a psychiatric evaluation blind to parent- and teacher-ratings. Children with rage outbursts (n=431, 47.2%) were assessed for diagnosis, family history, and clinical variables. RESULTS:Children were 12.0 (3.6) years; 26.5% were female. Bipolar disorder was rare (11.2%) in this sample; however, in children with parent- and teacher-reported rages, severe mood dysregulation was the most common condition (54.4%). In parent only reported rages, anxiety disorders were most common (40.6%) diagnoses, and in teacher only reported rages, learning/language disorders were the most common (46.0%) diagnoses. CONCLUSION: The context in which a rage outburst occurs may impact the diagnosis; however, diagnosis alone does not explain this difficult and impairing behavior.
Authors: Gabrielle A Carlson; Allison P Danzig; Lea R Dougherty; Sara J Bufferd; Daniel N Klein Journal: J Child Adolesc Psychopharmacol Date: 2016-01-19 Impact factor: 2.576