Using the Diagnostic Assessment of the Severely Handicapped-II (DASH-II) to measure the therapeutic effects of risperidone.
BACKGROUND
Within the scope of a double-blind, placebo-controlled, crossover medication study, the Diagnostic Assessment of the Severely Handicapped-II (DASH-II) was evaluated as a measurement for determining the effectiveness of the medication risperidone in treating the problem behaviour of 21 people with intellectual disabilities (ID).


METHODS
Participants' caregivers completed the DASH-II during the placebo/baseline phase of the study and the maintenance phase of the study, and completed the Aberrant Behavior Checklist - Community (ABC-C) weekly throughout the entire study. The results obtained using the DASH-II were compared to those obtained using the ABC-C, an instrument shown to be well correlated with the DASH-II.


RESULTS
Results suggest that while the DASH-II and the ABC-C were well correlated during the placebo/baseline phase of the current study, they were not well correlated at completion of the 6-month maintenance phase of the medication trial.


CONCLUSIONS
The DASH-II, while appropriate for assisting in the diagnosis of psychopathology in people with ID, does not appear to monitor changes in problem behaviour as a result of risperidone use as well as the ABC-C. Differences in the frequency of problem behaviour that each measure evaluated and the applicability of using the DASH-II to measure medication effects on problem behaviour are discussed.
Valdovinos
M G
MG
University of Kansas, KS, USA University of Kansas Medical Center, KS, USA. maria.g.valdovinos@vanderbilt.edu
Zarcone
J R
JR
Hellings
J A
JA
Kim
G
G
Schroeder
S R
SR
D014150:Antipsychotic Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D018592:Cross-Over Studies; D006233:Persons with Disabilities; D004311:Double-Blind Method; D006801:Humans; D001523:Mental Disorders / Q000145:classification / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000188:drug therapy*; D018967:Risperidone / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D012720:Severity of Illness Index; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D016896:Treatment Outcome
D014150:Antipsychotic Agents; D018967:Risperidone