[Characteristics of children and adolescents attended in a private psychiatric outpatient clinic].
BACKGROUND
There is a 7% up to 32% prevalence of psychiatric problems in the pediatric population.


OBJECTIVE
To study the epidemiological features of children and adolescents attended in a psychiatric outpatient clinic.


METHODS
All admissions to a psychiatric outpatient clinic, of people aged 18 years old or less, during 1998, were reviewed. The causes of consultation and the diagnoses were classified according to diagnostic manuals (ICPC-WONCA and DSM-IV respectively), by three experienced psychiatrists.


RESULTS
The files of 376 patients were reviewed (200 males, mean age of females 12 years old, mean age of males 10.5 years old). Seventy three percent consulted spontaneously. The main causes of consultation were anxiety disorders and adolescence problems (28%). The main diagnoses were attention deficit disorder and disruptive behavior, adaptative problems, mood and anxiety disorders. There were gender differences in the diagnoses. Women attended a mean of 6.3 sessions and men attended a mean of 4 sessions. Fifty nine percent abandoned treatment.


CONCLUSIONS
There is a limited access to mental health care. The low compliance with treatments must be studied and improved.
Recart
Constanza
C
Colmena Golden Cross, Centro Médico Psiquiátrico, Departamento de Salud Pública, Escuela de Medicina, Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile. crecart@interaccess.cl
Castro
Paulina
P
Alvarez
Hernán
H
Bedregal
Paula
P
D000293:Adolescent; D000554:Ambulatory Care Facilities; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D002677:Chile / Q000453:epidemiology; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D008297:Male; D001523:Mental Disorders / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000453:epidemiology*; D015995:Prevalence; D017149:Private Sector; D012189:Retrospective Studies
Características de niños y adolescentes atendidos en un consultorio psiquiátrico del sistema privado de salud en Chile.