Abstract
Purpose
The early identification of borderline personality traits (BPT) in adolescents helps to prevent their progression. Data are available for the clinical population, but little has been published on the general population, especially regarding age and sex distribution in adolescence. Even less is known about the comorbidity of BPT with other mental disorders.
Methods
We estimated the prevalence of BPT, by sex, age, and comorbidity, in a sample of adolescents aged 12–14 years (n = 799) from the Quebec Mental Health Survey. A complex sampling design was used to ensure representativeness. BPT was assessed with the abbreviated-diagnostic interview for borderlines–revised, with the adolescent as an informant. Reliability coefficients were above 0.80. Several levels of severity were explored using an independent criterion, defined by impairment according to the Columbia impairment scale.
Results
The overall prevalence of BPT was 6.3%. Prevalence estimates for the most impaired were 3.2% for the entire sample and 1.3% for 12-year-olds. Prevalence increased significantly with age for most impairment levels but did not differ significantly between the sexes. In adolescents, BPT displayed moderate-to-strong comorbidity with anxiety (AD) and insomnia disorders, and very strong comorbidity with depressive (DD), attention deficit hyperactivity (ADHD), and oppositional defiant/conduct disorders (ODD/CD).
Conclusion
We, therefore, make two clinical recommendations for child psychiatry practice: (1) with respect to the lower rate of male adolescents attending BPT Health Programs, increase BPT screening in male adolescents; (2) evaluate BPT when children with ADHD or ODD/CD develop AD or DD during adolescence.
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Availability of data and materials
Used software complied with field standards. Original data could be requested by the Quebec Ministry of Health and Social Services.
Abbreviations
- AD:
-
Anxiety disorders
- ADHD:
-
Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder
- BPD:
-
Borderline personality disorder
- BPT:
-
Borderline personality traits
- CD:
-
Conduct disorder
- DD:
-
Depressive disorders
- ODD:
-
Oppositional defiant disorder
- QCMHS:
-
Quebec mental health survey
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Acknowledgements
The QCMHS was funded by the Quebec Ministry of Health and Social Services and was conducted with the collaboration of Santé Québec. This study received the technical support from the Research Centre, Hôpital en santé mentale Rivières-des-Prairies (CRHRDP), CIUSSS du Nord-de-l’Île-de-Montréal, Montréal, Canada, and was carried out while the corresponding author was in residence as an invited researcher at the Center for Research and Intervention on Suicide, Ethical Issues, and End-of-life practices (CRISE), Montreal, Canada. Therefore, we would like to thank Pr. Godbout, Director of CRHRDP, Pr. Mishara, Director of CRISE and Pr. Choukroun, Dean of the faculty of Medicine, Picardie Jules Verne University (France). We would also like to thank Mr. Luc Dargis for his complementary bibliographical search and, Mrs. Catherine Goulet-Cloutier and Mr. Steve Carrière for their constant secretarial support.
Funding
The QCMHS was funded by the Quebec Ministry of Health and Social Services and was conducted with the collaboration of Santé Québec. This study received the technical support from the Research Centre, Hôpital en santé mentale Rivières-des-Prairies (CRHRDP), CIUSSS du Nord-de-l’Île-de-Montréal, Montréal, Canada.
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The QCMHS was commissioned by the Quebec Ministry of Health and Social Services and received its ethical approval from the Institutional Review Board (IRB) of the Riviere-des-Prairies Hospital (Montreal, Canada). The study has been performed in accordance with the ethical standards laid down in the 1964 Declaration of Helsinki and its later amendments.
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Guilé, J.M., Zavaglia, E., Berthiaume, C. et al. Prevalence and comorbidity of borderline personality traits in the Quebec general population aged 12–14 years. Soc Psychiatry Psychiatr Epidemiol 56, 2053–2062 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00127-021-02067-z
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00127-021-02067-z