Çocuk ve Ergen Adli Olgularda Ruhsal Değerlendirme.

Objectives: The aim of this study was to examine the diagnosis of mental disorders and sociodemografic variables of children and adolescents who referred to child psychiatry outpatient department with the request of criminal report. Method: Children and adolescents aged 6-18 years who referred to Sakarya Training and Research Hospital Child Psychiatry Outpatient Department for criminal reports were examined retrospectively in terms of diagnosis of mental diseases, intelligence levels and sociodemographic characteristics. The study was carried out on the basis of delinquent children (n=51), cases of abuse (n=100), and cases of early marriage (n=26) that make up the vast majority of criminal cases. Results: Mental disorders were detected in 71% of cases of abuse, 56.7% of delinquent children, and 11.5% of adolescents with request of early marriage. The most common mental disorders were posttraumatic stress disorder among abuse cases, conduct disorder among cases of delinquency, and major depressive disorder among cases of early marriage. Conclusion: Our study revealed that high rates of mental disorders were diagnosed in cases of abuse and delinquent children. Our results highlighted the importance of training for different requirements of criminal cases in the field of forensic child psychiatry and taking necessary precautions for children and adolescents that were subjected to forensic events. Mental health services that provide comprehensive screening, assessment and treatment of mental disorders for these children and adolescents should be developed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]