Australian psychiatrist reviews the benefits of childhood intervention in adulthood

Australian psychiatrist Philip Hazell discusses whether treatment of mental disorders in childhood leads to a healthier adulthood.Treatment of mental disorders in children is often effective at reducing and relieving symptoms and dysfunction; however, it is unclear if intervention early in life influences a positive outcome in adulthood, noting methodological challenges to demonstrating long-term benefits.Difficulties encountered within psychiatry include differences in the natural history of conditions and the variation in long-term outcome. For instance, some disorders are characterised by improvement or remission while others have a chronic relapsing course. In challenging what is meant by a healthy adulthood, Hazell notes that the generally accepted indicators include completion of study and transition to employment, a capacity for sustained relationships, and the absence of a criminal record, premature parenthood, relationship failures, substance misuse, persistent psychological symptoms and psychiatric hospitalisation.He proposed that, while assessment of long-term outcome is difficult, recent findings suggest that intervention in childhood may influence long-term outcome through several avenues such as the promotion of protective interpersonal relationships, by influencing better school attendance, participation and retention, and by arresting the progression of the disorder."The reduction of problems at the precursor or prodromal stage may delay the onset or limit the severity of a disorder," he stated, and implied that this can itself lead to the reduction or resolution of psychological symptoms leading to better overall health in the short- and long-term.He cites examples of beneficial outcomes through early intervention as including improved outcomes for autism since the introduction of early interventions to address language impairment, and reduced mortality in anorexia nervosa.He surmised that "there are feasible enduring benefits of treatment for childhood mental disorders." "Success requires more assertive approaches to treatment than are traditionally employed by child and adolescent mental health services."Reference...