title: Persisting psychotic-like experiences are associated with both externalising and internalising psychopathology in a longitudinal general population child cohort.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Persisting psychotic-like experiences (PLEs) are associated with an increased risk of internalising symptoms in adolescence. Whether this association holds similarly for externalising symptoms, and from mid-childhood, is unclear. This prospective study investigated the extent to which PLE persistence was associated with internalising and externalising psychopathology in a community sample of children aged 9-11years at study commencement.
  
  
  METHODS
  8099 children (mean age 10.4years) completed questionnaires assessing PLEs, externalising and internalising symptoms. A subsample of 547 children completed reassessment, on average, two years later.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Two-thirds (66%) of children reported PLEs at baseline. Approximately two years later, PLEs persisted in 39% of those children. After adjustment for previous psychopathology and other potential confounds, children with persisting PLEs were at higher risk for internalising (odds ratio [OR]=1.94; 95% confidence interval [CI] 1.13-3.34) and externalising (OR=1.97; 95% CI 1.19-3.26) psychopathology than children whose PLEs remitted; and, than children who never presented PLEs.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Persistent PLEs from mid-childhood are associated with later internalising and externalising psychopathology in the general population, whereas transitory PLEs may be part of a spectrum of normative childhood development. Interventions that target persistent PLEs may contribute to a reduction in common childhood psychopathology.
authors: Department of Forensic and Neurodevelopmental Sciences, Institute of Psychiatry, King's College London, London, United Kingdom. Johnny.Downs@kcl.ac.uk
authors: Johnny M
authors: JM
authors: Downs
authors: Alexis E
authors: AE
authors: Cullen
authors: Marcela
authors: M
authors: Barragan
authors: Kristin R
authors: KR
authors: Laurens
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D041923:Adolescent Development / Q000502:physiology*; D002648:Child; D002657:Child Development / Q000502:physiology*; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006801:Humans; D007389:Internal-External Control; D008131:London / Q000453:epidemiology; D008137:Longitudinal Studies; D008297:Male; D011237:Predictive Value of Tests; D015995:Prevalence; D011569:Psychiatric Status Rating Scales; D011618:Psychotic Disorders / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000473:pathology / Q000523:psychology*; D018570:Risk Assessment; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D014505:Urban Population