Possible basal ganglia pathology in children with complex symptoms.
BACKGROUND
Clinical observation of children presenting with a myriad of motor, behavioral, emotional, and sensorial symptoms who do not respond to treatment led to the hypothesis that these children may constitute a unique population, perhaps even a new clinical entity. The literature on child and adolescent psychopathology does not specifically address the phenomenological, diagnostic, and etiological factors that make these children unique. For this reason, a preliminary study was conducted to identify additional symptoms and features that make these children different.


METHODS
Data were collected in 2001 on 7 children with complex symptomatology using the Behavior Assessment System for Children, the Anxiety Disorders Interview Schedule for DSM-IV, and a neurological illnesses and symptoms questionnaire designed by the authors.


RESULTS
On average, these children met full DSM-IV criteria for 1 to 5 diagnoses. The most prevalent diagnoses were attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder, obsessive-compulsive disorder, oppositional defiant disorder, and pervasive developmental disorder. These children also exhibited a high incidence of sensory hyperarousal, aggressiveness, hypersexuality, and neuroethological behaviors. Almost all of the children also had indications of a history of bacterial or viral infection.


CONCLUSIONS
The specific symptoms identified and the biological factors found in many of the children seem to suggest basal ganglia involvement.
Yaryura-Tobias
Jose A
JA
Bio-Behavioral Institute, Great Neck, NY 11021, USA. Yaryura1@aol.com
Rabinowitz
Dena C
DC
Neziroglu
Fugen
F
D000293:Adolescent; D000342:Affective Symptoms / Q000175:diagnosis*; D001008:Anxiety Disorders / Q000175:diagnosis; D001289:Attention Deficit Disorder with Hyperactivity / Q000175:diagnosis*; D019958:Attention Deficit and Disruptive Behavior Disorders / Q000175:diagnosis*; D001480:Basal Ganglia Diseases / Q000175:diagnosis*; D002648:Child; D002653:Child Behavior Disorders / Q000175:diagnosis*; D002659:Child Development Disorders, Pervasive / Q000175:diagnosis*; D015897:Comorbidity; D039721:Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007389:Internal-External Control; D008297:Male; D009460:Neurologic Examination / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D009771:Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder / Q000175:diagnosis*; D010552:Personality Assessment / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D011594:Psychometrics / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D011596:Psychomotor Disorders / Q000175:diagnosis*; D012307:Risk Factors