Self-reported symptoms and health service use in adolescence in persons who later develop psychotic disorders: a prospective case-control study.
OBJECTIVE
To investigate self-reported psychiatric and somatic symptoms and health service use at age 16 in persons who later developed a psychotic disorder compared with a control group from the same geographical areas.


METHODS
Responses concerning psychiatric or somatic health and health service use from Norwegian youth studies in a cohort of 15- and 16-year-olds in three Norwegian counties (N = 11 101, 90% response rate) were gathered. The questionnaire responses from persons later identified with a lifetime diagnosis of DSM-IV (Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fourth Edition) psychotic disorders (n = 30) (confirmed psychosis, CP) were compared with responses from the rest of the group (population control, PC) (n = 11 067). Follow-up analyses were made for cases with a confirmed onset of a psychotic disorder after the time of the survey (n = 21).


RESULTS
The main significant differences between the CP and PC groups were more self-reported anxiety, depression and 'feeling in need of treatment for eating disorders' at age 16 in the CP group. The rate of self-reported eating disorder symptoms alone reached the level of statistical significance in the follow-up analyses. The CP group did not use available health services to a markedly greater extent than the control group.


CONCLUSIONS
We found that, in comparison with others, youths who were later identified with a psychotic disorder reported more symptoms at age 16.
Division of Mental Health, Innlandet Hospital Trust, Ottestad, Norway.
Unni
U
Bratlien
Merete
M
Øie
Elisabeth
E
Haug
Paul
P
Møller
Ole A
OA
Andreassen
Lars
L
Lien
Ingrid
I
Melle
D000293:Adolescent; D016022:Case-Control Studies; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D010342:Patient Acceptance of Health Care / Q000523:psychology* / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D062706:Prodromal Symptoms; D011446:Prospective Studies; D011618:Psychotic Disorders / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000523:psychology*; D057566:Self Report
adolescence; early intervention; prospective studies; psychosis