Children have long been underserved by the mental health community, NIMH officials say. As few as one in five children with mental disorders receive treatment, and little research has focused on mental health interventions and treatments designed specifically for children.

Children?s mental health problems are often ignored because of the stigma attached to labeling a child with a mental disorder?as well as parents? fears that they will be blamed for such illnesses, says Peter Jensen, MD, associate director for child and adolescent research at NIMH.

NIMH would like to change that by increasing awareness of mental disorders in children and increasing researchers? understanding of how to diagnose and treat childhood mental illness and the risk factors associated with such problems. ?We need to modernize our therapy and prevention armamentarium for children, as well as improve our ability to diagnose childhood disorders,? says NIMH Director Steven Hyman, MD.

Specifically, NIMH seeks more research on:

? The safety and effectiveness of treatments?both medications and psychosocial therapies?designed specifically for children and adolescents.

? The factors that adversely affect brain development to cause mental illness, including the effect of environmental factors such as poverty, lack of educational opportunities, violence, exposure to abuse and trauma.

? Interventions that attempt to prevent mental illness by changing environmental risk factors such as violence, trauma or inadequate caretaking.

?The cause and treatment of specific disorders, such as autism, depression and attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder.

Over the next year, NIMH expects to release a series of program announcements encouraging researchers to apply for grants that address these critical areas, Jensen says.
?Beth Azar