Clinical characteristics of anxiety disordered youth

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Abstract

Reports the characteristics of a large, representative sample of treatment-seeking anxious youth (N = 488). Participants, aged 7–17 years (mean 10.7 years), had a principal DSM-IV diagnosis of separation anxiety disorder (SAD), generalized anxiety disorder (GAD), or social phobia (SP). Although youth with a co-primary diagnosis for which a different disorder-specific treatment would be indicated (e.g., major depressive disorder, substance abuse) were not included, there were few other exclusion criteria. Participants and their parent/guardian underwent an extensive baseline assessment using a broad array of measures capturing diagnostic status, anxiety symptoms and severity, and areas of functional impairment. Means and standard deviations of the measures of psychopathology and data on diagnostic status are provided. The sample had moderate to severe anxiety disorder and was highly comorbid, with 55.3% of participants meeting criteria for at least one non-targeted DSM-IV disorder. Anxiety disorders in youth often do not present as a single/focused disorder: such disorders in youth overlap in symptoms and are highly comorbid among themselves.

Section snippets

Demographic and clinical characteristics of anxiety disordered youth

Anxiety disorders are among the most common conditions affecting youth (Costello, Egger, & Angold, 2005). Epidemiological reports based on large and/or nationally representative samples estimate the prevalence of anxiety disorders in youth to range between 10% and 20% (Achenbach et al., 1998, Shaffer et al., 1996). In general, anxiety disorders are often comorbid among themselves and with other disorders. If left untreated, pediatric anxiety disorders predict adult anxiety disorders and

Participants

Enrollment sites represent a range of demographic and geographical locations and utilized a variety of recruitment strategies. Participants completed a three stage screening process that included an initial semi-scripted phone screen (Gate A), a diagnostic evaluation, physical exam, and pregnancy test (when appropriate) to ensure eligibility (Gate B), and if eligible, a baseline assessment to obtain pre-treatment parent and child ratings about the child's anxiety and relevant comorbidity, and

Demographic characteristics

The mean age of the sample was 10.70 years (SD = 2.80; range = 84–214 months), with the majority (74.2%) aged 7–12 years. The gender distribution of the sample was evenly distributed, with 246 boys (50.4%) and 242 girls (49.6%). The ethnic/racial distribution of the sample was 78.9% white (n = 385), 9.0% black (n = 44), 2.5% Asian (n = 12), 1.2% American Indian (n = 6), 0.4% Native Hawaiian/Other Pacific Islander (n = 2), and 8.0% other (n = 39). The sample was also predominately non-Hispanic (87.9%).

Of the

Discussion

This treatment-seeking sample had moderate to severe anxiety disorder(s). Given the relatively few exclusion criteria, wide age range, and multiple sites, the sample represents a real-world presentation of distressing anxiety among youth, particularly prepubertal youth. It is noteworthy that less than 25% of the sample met criteria for only one of the three targeted anxiety disorders, whereas 36% met criteria for all three disorders. These findings are consistent with other reports (e.g., Essau

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