Depression in Newly Diagnosed Juvenile Diabetics

Kovacs, Maria

Abstract

This is a three year prospective study of 100 newly diagnosed juvenile diabetics, aged 8 to 13. It will reliably assess and systematically document the extent of depression in the child to: medical status at the time of hospital admission, adequacy of diabetic control over time, depression and anxiety in the mother (mothering one), and familial history of affective disorders. It is hypothesized that in the child capable of abstract operational thought, a brief depressive reaction may represent a """"""""mourning"""""""" for the pre-illness self and may be a good prognosticator of subsequent psychiatric/medical status. On the other hand, familial history of affective disorders and/or concurrent clinical depression in the parent may correlate with clinical depression in the parent may correlate with clinical depression in the child. A structured Clinical Interview Schedule and rating scales are used to assess depressive and related symptoms. Initial assessment is two weeks after discharge from the Metabolic Unit of Children's Hospital. Clinical and medical indices which serve as independent variables are assessed independently of the child's depression. Follow-up interviews at 1-, 4-, 8-, 12-, 18-, and 24-months serve to gather data, and to test the hypothesis made explicit and are contrasted with data from a """"""""psychiatric"""""""" child sample. Since clinical depression may be a special problem in the medical management of the diabetic child, its proper identification will enhance appropriate referral for psychological/pharmacological treatment, and will have a positive effect on the child's illness and his/her overall quality of life.