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16 - Depressive disorders

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  21 August 2009

By
Richard Harrington
Edited by
Philip J. Graham
Richard Harrington
Affiliation:
Royal Manchester Children's Hospital, Manchester, UK
Philip J. Graham
Affiliation:
Institute of Child Health, University College London
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Summary

There is no longer a debate about the existence of major depressive disorder in late childhood and adolescence. Reported prevalence in adolescence ranges from 1% to 6% of the general population, with a recent British study finding that approximately 2% of adolescents had had a recent episode of major depression (Meltzer et al., 2000). Rates in children are much less, probably in the order of one per 1000. There is a great deal of comorbidity with other emotional disorders and also with conduct disorder. Follow-up studies have demonstrated that young people with depression have a greater risk of subsequent episodes than non-depressed psychiatric cases. There is also an increased risk of both attempted and completed suicide.

A variety of treatments are now available for major depression in young people. For example, recent findings suggest that the serotonin-specific reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) can be effective (Emslie et al., 1997; Keller et al., 2001; Emslie et al., 2002). However, in many cases, psychological treatments are currently the preferred first line of treatment. Several different psychological treatments have been evaluated for depressed children and adolescents. Probably the best evaluated are the cognitive behavioural therapies (CBTs).

This chapter provides a practical account of CBT for depression in late childhood and adolescence. The chapter begins with a brief overview of the theory behind CBT and some general principles of treatment. The core CBT techniques are then described. The chapter concludes with a brief overview of the evidence base for CBT.

Type
Chapter
Information
Cognitive Behaviour Therapy for Children and Families , pp. 263 - 280
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Print publication year: 2004

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  • Depressive disorders
  • Edited by Philip J. Graham, Institute of Child Health, University College London
  • Book: Cognitive Behaviour Therapy for Children and Families
  • Online publication: 21 August 2009
  • Chapter DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/CBO9780511543845.016
Available formats
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Save book to Dropbox

To save content items to your account, please confirm that you agree to abide by our usage policies. If this is the first time you use this feature, you will be asked to authorise Cambridge Core to connect with your account. Find out more about saving content to Dropbox.

  • Depressive disorders
  • Edited by Philip J. Graham, Institute of Child Health, University College London
  • Book: Cognitive Behaviour Therapy for Children and Families
  • Online publication: 21 August 2009
  • Chapter DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/CBO9780511543845.016
Available formats
×

Save book to Google Drive

To save content items to your account, please confirm that you agree to abide by our usage policies. If this is the first time you use this feature, you will be asked to authorise Cambridge Core to connect with your account. Find out more about saving content to Google Drive.

  • Depressive disorders
  • Edited by Philip J. Graham, Institute of Child Health, University College London
  • Book: Cognitive Behaviour Therapy for Children and Families
  • Online publication: 21 August 2009
  • Chapter DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/CBO9780511543845.016
Available formats
×