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Clinical Trial Data: Both Parents Having Psychiatric Symptoms as Risk Factor for Children’s Mental Illness

Authors :
Hannah Suess
Silke Wiegand-Grefe
Bonnie Adema
Anne Daubmann
Reinhold Kilian
Antonia Zapf
Sibylle M. Winter
Martin Lambert
Karl Wegscheider
Mareike Busmann
Source :
Children, Vol 9, Iss 11, p 1697 (2022)
Publication Year :
2022
Publisher :
MDPI AG, 2022.

Abstract

Children of mentally ill parents represent a particularly vulnerable risk group for the development of mental illness. This study examines whether there is a predictive association between children’s psychiatric symptomatology and (1) the clinical diagnosis according to the International Statistical Classification of Diseases and Related Health Problems (ICD-10) of their mentally ill parent as well as (2) to families both parents showing psychiatric symptoms. The study is part of the multicenter controlled trial project “Children of Mentally Ill Parents” (CHIMPS). For this purpose, the psychiatric symptomatology of the mentally ill parent (N = 196) and his or her partner (N = 134) as well as the psychiatric symptomatology of their children aged 4 to 18 years (N = 290) was measured using clinical rated ICD-10-diagnosis, self-rated Brief Symptom Inventory (BSI), and Child Behavior Checklist (CBCL). Using multilevel analyses, the severity of the parental psychiatric symptomatology (BSI) was identified as a significant predictor of children’s psychiatric symptomatology (CBCL). Children of parents with a personality disorder (ICD-10) were not more affected than children of parents with another ICD-10-diagnosis. However, children with two parents showing psychiatric symptoms (CBCL) were significantly more affected than children with one mentally ill parent. The results of this study support the well-known view that parental mental illness is a risk factor for children’s psychiatric symptoms. Therefore, increased support, especially in high-risk families, both parents having psychiatric symptoms, is highly necessary and should be implemented in the future psychotherapeutic family care.

Details

Language :
English
ISSN :
22279067
Volume :
9
Issue :
11
Database :
Directory of Open Access Journals
Journal :
Children
Publication Type :
Academic Journal
Accession number :
edsdoj.959718ebe6584b03aa0d54a58c0d7174
Document Type :
article
Full Text :
https://doi.org/10.3390/children9111697