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Objectives: To describe the development and psychometric properties of the 2014 Ontario Child Health Study Emotional Behavioural Scales (OCHS-EBS) for dimensional measurement of 7 disorders based on criteria from the fifth edition of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-5).Methods: Scale items were selected by agreement among 19 child psychologists and psychiatrists rating the correspondence between item descriptions and DSM-5 symptoms. Psychometric evaluation of the item properties and parent/caregiver and youth scales came from a general population study of 10,802 children and youth aged 4 to 17 years in 6537 families. Test-retest reliability data were collected from a subsample of 280 children and their caregivers who independently completed the OCHS-EBS checklist on 2 occasions 7 to 14 days apart. Structural equation modelling was used to assess internal and external convergent and discriminant validity-the latter tested against the Mini International Neuropsychiatric Interview for Children and Adolescents (MINI-KID).Results: Confirmatory factor analyses exhibited adequate item fit to all scales. Except for conduct disorder and youth-assessed separation anxiety disorder, internal (Cronbach's α) and test-retest reliability (Pearson's r) for scale scores were 0.70 or above. Except for youth-assessed conduct disorder, the OCHS-EBS met criteria for internal and convergent and discriminant validity. Compared with the MINI-KID, the OCHS-EBS met criteria for external convergent and discriminant validity.Conclusions: The OCHS-EBS provide reliable and valid dimensional measurement of 7 DSM-5 disorders assessed by caregivers and youth in the general population. Part II describes use of the OCHS-EBS as a categorical (present/absent) measure of disorder. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study examines the association between childhood abuse and intimate relationship quality and attachment security in young adults. Data were drawn from the Ontario Child Health Study, a province-wide communitybased survey that collected baseline data in 1983 from 3,294 children (aged 4 to 16 years) and follow-up data in 2000/2001 (then aged 21 to 35 years). The sample comprised 1,885 men and women who had completed questionnaires regarding retrospective accounts of childhood abuse and current relationship status in 2000/2001. Childhood physical and sexual abuse was assessed using the short form of the Childhood Experiences of Violence Questionnaire. It was hypothesized that childhood physical and sexual abuse would be associated with adult intimate relationship functioning, adjusting for childhood family and individual factors, and that these associations would be mediated by participants' current mental health. The analysis for intimate relationship quality showed that current mental health reduced the association between physical abuse and poor relationship quality (beta 0.09 (se 0.02) to 0.08 (0.02)) and between sexual abuse and this outcome to a non-significant level ((beta 0.07 (se 0.03) to 0.05 (0.03)). The analysis for adult attachment security showed that current mental health reduced the association between physical abuse and insecure attachment to a non-significant level (OR 1.33 (95% CI 1.02-1.76) to OR 1.31 (0.98-1.76)) and between sexual abuse and this outcome (OR 1.89 (1.36-2.65) to OR 1.74 (1.19-2.52)). The importance of current mental health functioning in accounting for continuity in intimate relationship functioning from childhood to young adulthood is discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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Background. Extremely low birth weight (ELBW; <1000 g) children may be at risk for experiencing peer victimization. We examined retrospectively reported peer victimization in ELBW and control children in the oldest known, prospectively followed, population-based birth cohort of ELBW survivors. Method. We compared levels of verbal and physical peer victimization in ELBW and control children. We also predicted peer victimization in the ELBW sample from child characteristics. Results. ELBW children, especially girls, were at an increased risk for verbal, but not physical victimization. In addition, ELBW children with a higher IQ reported higher levels of verbal victimization, although ELBW females who had a lower body mass index in childhood reported higher levels of physical victimization. Conclusion. Findings highlight the need for parents and clinicians to be aware that ELBW girls, especially those with a lower body mass index in childhood, may be at increased risk of peer victimization, as are ELBW children with a higher IQ. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We undertook a systematic review of the literature on the long-term treatment of attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). We used systematic strategies to identify randomized treatment studies in which treatment was administered for 12 weeks or more. We included 14 studies involving 1379 subjects. Because of the limited number of high-quality studies and the heterogeneity of outcome measures, we did not perform meta-analysis. We rated 5 studies as adequate for methodological quality. Five studies followed children for more than 26 weeks. Pharmacologic interventions were studied more frequently than non-pharmacologic ones. Six studies permitted evaluation of the effects of combined drug and behavioural intervention. Twenty-five different outcomes were measured using 26 different tests. Stimulant medication appears to reduce ADHD (7 studies), dysfunctional social behaviour (6 studies), and internalizing symptoms (2 studies). Available studies provide little evidence for improved academic performance with stimulants (3 studies). Medications other than stimulants have not been studied extensively (3 studies). Only 1 study showed that combination therapy adds to the effects of medication. Rigorous treatment research among representative samples of ADHD individuals is needed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]