Chronic medical conditions and developmental psychopathology in preschool aged children

Article Outline

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Curtis and Luby provide evidence from questionnaires completed by 273 parents, and then functional assessments of children, that preschool aged children with relatively minor but chronic medical conditions are at substantial risk for developmental psychopathology. The message is two-fold: 1) Clinicians, parents, and “teachers” should be aware of the risk and observe children's behavior for signs of troubled adjustment to illness, and 2) Investigators should study further the psychosocial consequences of chronic illness, as well as interventional strategies that are fine-tuned for preschool aged children.