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Only about half of American children and teenagers who have certain mental disorders receive professional services, according to a nationally representative survey funded in part by the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH). The survey also provides a comprehensive look at the prevalence of common mental disorders.

The results are part of the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES), a collaboration between NIMH and the National Center for Health Statistics of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The survey conducted from 2001 to 2004 had 3,042 participants. These most recent results include data from children and adolescents ages 8 to 15, and were published online ahead of print December 14, 2009, in the journal Pediatrics.

“Data on the prevalence of mental disorders among U.S. youth have been varied, making it difficult to truly understand how many children and teens are affected,” said NIMH Director Thomas R. Insel, M.D. “These data from the NHANES survey can serve as an important baseline as we follow trends of mental disorders in children.”

In the study, the young people were interviewed directly. Parents or caregivers also provided information about their children’s mental health. The researchers tracked six mental disorders — generalized anxiety disorder (GAD), panic disorder, eating disorders (anorexia and bulimia), depression, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and conduct disorder. The participants were also asked about what treatment, if any, they were receiving.

Overall, 13 percent of respondents met criteria for having at least one of the six mental disorders within the last year. About 1.8 percent of the respondents had more than one disorder, usually a combination of ADHD and conduct disorder. Among the specific disorders,
8.6 percent had ADHD, with males more likely than females to have the disorder;
3.7 percent had depression, with females more likely than males to have the disorder;
2.1 percent had conduct disorder;
0.7 percent had an anxiety disorder (GAD or panic disorder);
0.1 percent had an eating disorder (anorexia or bulimia).

“With the exception of ADHD, the prevalence rates reported here are generally lower than those reported in other published findings of mental disorders in children, but they are comparable to other studies that employed similar methods and criteria,”said lead author Kathleen Merikangas, Ph.D., of NIMH.

Those of a lower socioeconomic status were more likely to report any disorder, particularly ADHD, while those of a higher socioeconomic status were more likely to report having an anxiety disorder. Mexican-Americans had significantly higher rates of mood disorders than whites or African-Americans, but overall, few ethnic differences in rates of disorders emerged.

Merikangas and colleagues also found that overall, 55 percent of those with a disorder had consulted with a mental health professional, confirming the trend of an increase in service use for childhood mental disorders, especially ADHD. However, only 32 percent of youth with an anxiety disorder sought treatment, a finding consistent with other studies. Moreover, African-Americans and Mexican-Americans were significantly less likely to seek treatment than whites, reiterating the need to identify and remove barriers to treatment for minority youth, noted the researchers.

“Until now, there has been a dearth of reliable data on the magnitude, course and treatment patterns of mental disorders among U.S. youth,” said Dr. Merikangas. “When combined with data from other nationally representative surveys, the data will provide a valuable basis for making decisions about health care for American youth,” she concluded.

The mission of the NIMH is to transform the understanding and treatment of mental illnesses through basic and clinical research, paving the way for prevention, recovery and cure. For more information, visit www.nimh.nih.gov.
The National Institutes of Health (NIH) — The Nation’s Medical Research Agency — includes 27 Institutes and Centers and is a component of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. It is the primary federal agency for conducting and supporting basic, clinical and translational medical research, and it investigates the causes, treatments, and cures for both common and rare diseases. For more information about NIH and its programs, visit www.nih.gov.

Exercise appears to reduce the risk of death in male colon cancer survivors, researchers report.

The study, which began in January 1986, included 668 men who’d been treated for stage I, stage II or stage III colon cancer that had not spread (nonmetastatic cancer). Every two years, the men were sent questionnaires that asked them about any new cancer and disease diagnoses, as well as their physical activity. A metabolic equivalent task (MET) score was matched to each type of physical activity, with exercises that burned more energy receiving higher MET scores.

During the study period, which ended in January 2006, 258 of the participants died, including 88 who died from colon cancer.

“Men who were physically active after diagnosis of nonmetastatic colorectal cancer experienced a significantly decreased risk of colorectal cancer-specific death, as well as death from any cause,” wrote Dr. Jeffrey A. Meyerhardt, of the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute in Boston, and colleagues.

“Men who engaged in more than 27 MET hours per week had more than 50 percent lower risk of colorectal cancer-specific mortality compared with inactive men. This association was consistently detected regardless of age, disease stage, body-mass index, diagnosis year, tumor location and prediagnosis physical activity,” the study authors reported in the Dec. 14/28 issue of the Archives of Internal Medicine.

“These results provide further support that physical activity after colorectal cancer diagnosis may lower the risk of death from that disease,” the researchers concluded. “A randomized study among high-risk stage II and stage III colon cancer survivors that will compare the use of general education materials with a program that includes supervised physical activity sessions and behavioral support delivered over three years will soon open; the primary endpoint is disease-free survival. The findings from the present study further support that effort.”

Identifying sight and hearing problems in teens who are in the early stages of schizophrenia may help doctors fully restore those senses and lessen the impact of the devastating thought disorder, U.S. researchers say.

A new study found that problems in basic sensory processing abilities cause many of the more complicated cognitive deficits in people with schizophrenia.

“In people with schizophrenia, we know that visual and auditory sensory systems that functioned well in early childhood begin to break down during adolescence, years earlier than the onset of the more complex cognitive symptoms of schizophrenia,” Dr. Daniel C. Javitt, of the New York University School of Medicine, said in a news release.

“We already know a lot about what people with this disorder can and cannot do,” Javitt said. “Our research focuses on understanding how the brain works and identifying specific biomarkers for cognitive impairment that will distinguish schizophrenia from Alzheimer’s and other diseases.”

He and his team determined that impaired function of the visual and auditory systems makes it more difficult for people with schizophrenia to read, pay attention and understand social cues. The researchers also identified biomarkers in the brain that could help determine which patients would benefit from early intervention.

Nearly 20% neglect to take drugs that could prevent another blood clot, study finds

About one-fifth of ischemic stroke survivors don’t take medications that can reduce their risk of another stroke, a U.S. study has found.

Ischemic stroke is caused by blocked blood flow in the brain. Several types of medications can reduce the risk of another ischemic stroke. These include blood thinners (antithrombotic medications), of which aspirin is the most common.

This seven-year study of 4,168 ischemic stroke survivors found that about 19 percent of patients didn’t take blood thinners. Men, older patients and non-Hispanic patients were more likely to take blood thinners.

Further research is needed to determine exactly why patients who can benefit from these medications don’t take them, said the University of California, Los Angeles researchers.