Hygiena 2024, 69(2):44-49 | DOI: 10.21101/hygiena.a1855

Monitoring the development of mental health in clients of the Addiction Clinic for Children and Adolescents

Simona Sedláčková^{1, 2}, Alena Fialová^{3, 4}, Vladimír Pavlík², Lidmila Hamplová⁵, Kateřina Beji Sedláčková⁶, Veronika Pišová⁵

¹ Univerzita Karlova, 1. lékařská fakulta a VFN, Adiktologická ambulance pro děti a dorost, Praha, Česká republika

² Univerzita obrany, Vojenská lékařská fakulta, Hradec Králové, Česká republika

³ Státní zdravotní ústav, Oddělení biostatistiky, Praha, Česká republika

⁴ Univerzita Karlova, 3. lékařská fakulta, Ústav epidemiologie a biostatistiky, Praha, Česká republika

⁵ Vysoká škola zdravotnická, Praha, Česká republika

⁶ Univerzita Karlova, Fakulta humanitních studií, Praha, Česká republika

Aim: Mental health disorders in children have recently been drawing an increasing amount of attention, also in connection with the full capacities of psychiatric outpatient clinics for children and adolescents, as well as addiction outpatient clinics and children's psychiatric clinics. In line with assumptions that the mental state of children deteriorates, a retrospective study was conducted to evaluate the situation from 2016 to 2022. The aim of the research was to evaluate the state of mental health of child clients of the addiction clinic with a focus on the identification of risk factors influencing the occurrence of dissociation disorders in monitored children in connection with addictive behaviour and development in the years 2016-2022.

Methods: During the period from 2016 to 2022, in cooperation with parents and child psychiatrists, anamnestic data were obtained annually from 30 selected clients of the addiction clinic for children and adolescents. Respondents included in the study were selected by random sampling from all clinic clients in a given year. For the entire monitored period, there were 210 respondents. The collected data were statistically processed and evaluated. A linear regression model was used for trend testing, and logistic regression was employed for the multivariate analysis of factors influencing the occurrence of dissociative disorder and Internet Addiction Disorder (IAD) in children. The odds ratio (OR) was used as an indicator of the association between categorical variables. The significance level was set at 0.05.

Results: Children who were diagnosed with a psychiatric illness in childhood and the psychiatric burden of the parents' anamnesis show a significant risk coefficient for the occurrence of dissociative disorder. Children with a risk factor of psychiatric history had a 6.3-fold increased risk of developing a dissociative disorder compared to children without a psychiatric history. The most statistically significant factor associated with the risk of IAD is the use of illegal addictive substances. Children who used illegal addictive substances, including problematic use of psychopharmaceuticals, IAD compared to children who did not use illegal addictive substances. A significant increase in risk also occurs in boys, children with childhood trauma, behavioural disorders, and ADHD (attention deficit hyperactivity disorder).

Conclusion: The change can be contributed to by the close cooperation of experts from the fields of child psychiatry, psychology, addictology, and psychotherapy, but especially by cooperation with parents as part of family therapy.

Keywords: addiction, mental health, children, adolescents

Received: March 2024; Revised: March 13, 2024; Accepted: April 26, 2024; Published: June 30, 2024  Show citation