An evaluation of the effectiveness of psychiatric treatment on adolescent in-patients and out-patients.

Abstract

The psychopathology of 33 adolescents (11 inpatients and 22 out-patients) was measured by a variety of standardized and non-standardized instruments, immediately prior to treatment (baseline), and 10 weeks later (outcome). Their parent were assessed on measures of current mood and personality traits, over the same time interval, also on quality of life, marital satisfaction, and amount of contact with family, friends and relatives, at baseline only. Together with extensive measures of family life and demography, a psychosocial profile of subjects and their families was obtained. The demographic homogeneity of the sub-groups was demonstrated, the only significant differences being that in-patients were older, and out-patients' households larger. Significant clinical differences at baseline were also few; all in-patients were clinically disordered, as were 19 out-patients. There was an even spread of disorders (conduct, emotional, and mixed) between sub-groups. Parents of in-patients rated their children as more disordered than out-patient's parents rated their children. Outcome measures, including the repeated measure of child psychopathology, indicated more significant and substantial trends for improvement over baseline conditions for in-patients than for out-patients, although both sub-groups were less disordered, overall. Both sub-groups of mothers were depressed at baseline, and out-patients' mothers remained so, at outcome. Anxiety in mothers of in-patients was significantly less at outcome. Personality traits among both sub-groups of parents were similar, showing slight introversion and neuroticism, and these traits remained stable over time.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)