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Depressive symptoms among teenagers in the emergency department: prevalence estimate and concordance with parental perceptions

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Abstract

Purpose

This study aims to estimate the prevalence of depressive symptoms among adolescents seen in hospital emergency departments and to investigate the concordance between self-reported adolescent depression and parental perceptions of their adolescents’ health status.

Method

A multicentre cross-sectional survey in three emergency departments receiving adolescents in Ile-de-France took place in 2010. All adolescents completed a questionnaire including the Adolescent Depression Rating Scale (ADRS) and a series of questions concerning somatisation and risk behaviours. Parents simultaneously completed a questionnaire collecting their perceptions of their adolescent’s health status.

Results

The study included 346 adolescents, and of them, 320 were fully analysed. ADRS scores were in the normal range for 70.6 % of the sample (score of <3) (n = 226); 19.4 % (n = 62) showed moderate depressive symptoms (3 ≤ score < 6), and 10.0 %, severe depressive symptoms (score of ≥6) (n = 32). We observed a wide discrepancy between adolescent depression, determined by a score on a self-administered scale, and parental perceptions of it.

Conclusion

Routine use of a self-administered questionnaire in emergency units could enable identification of adolescents with moderate or severe depressive symptoms. The present study confirms the importance of increasing parental awareness of their adolescent children’s depressive symptoms.

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Acknowledgments

This research was supported by a grant from the PFIZER Foundation for Child and Adolescent Health and by a grant from the Fondation de France. The two sponsors had no involvement in study design, collection, analysis, interpretation of data, the writing of the report and the decision to submit the manuscript for publication.

Conflict of interest

The authors do not report any conflict of interests.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Service de Pédiatrie, Hôpital A. Paré (APHP), 9, Avenue Charles de Gaulle, Boulogne, 92100, France

    Marc Sznajder, Stéphanie Kerbourc’h, Bertrand Chevallier & Chantal Stheneur

  2. Service de Pédopsychiatrie, Centre Hospitalier de Versailles, Le Chesnay, 78150, France

    Mario Speranza

  3. INSERM U669, Univ Paris-Sud and Univ Paris Descartes, Paris, France

    Mario Speranza, Anne Revah-Levy & Chantal Stheneur

  4. Service des Urgences, Hôpital A. Paré (APHP), Boulogne, 92100, France

    Caroline Guyot

  5. Service de Pédiatrie, Centre Hospitalier de Versailles, Le Chesnay, 78150, France

    Solene Martin, Sylvie Nathanson & Sarah-Louise Cottinet

  6. Service de Pédiatrie, Centre Hospitalier Intercommunal de Créteil, Créteil, 94000, France

    Sandra Biscardi & Delphine Delalande

  7. Université Versailles Saint-Quentin en Yvelines, Versailles, 78000, France

    Bertrand Chevallier

  8. URC, Hôpital A. Paré, Boulogne, 92100, France

    Marc Sznajder & Idir Ghout

  9. EA 4047, Université Versailles Saint-Quentin en Yvelines, Versailles, 78000, France

    Mario Speranza

  10. Univ. Paris-Sud, Univ. Paris-Descartes, Paris, 75005, France

    Anne Revah-Levy

  11. Centre de Soins Psychothérapeutiques de Transition pour Adolescents, Hôpital d’Argenteuil, Argenteuil, 95107, France

    Anne Revah-Levy

Authors
  1. Marc Sznajder
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  2. Mario Speranza
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  3. Caroline Guyot
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  4. Solene Martin
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  5. Sylvie Nathanson
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  6. Stéphanie Kerbourc’h
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  7. Sandra Biscardi
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  8. Sarah-Louise Cottinet
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  9. Delphine Delalande
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  10. Bertrand Chevallier
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  11. Anne Revah-Levy
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  12. Idir Ghout
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  13. Chantal Stheneur
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Marc Sznajder.

Appendices

Appendix 1: self-administered questionnaire used in emergency department

  • Service: … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … ….

  • Date of passage to emergencies: / / Time: … .. h …. min

  • Date of Birth: / /

  • Gender: M/F

figure b

Appendix 2: parents’ questionnaire

We are conducting a survey among adolescents present at the emergency units, whatever their reason for coming.

Thank you for answering, in complete anonymity, these questions which involve the family situation of your child and your perception of his or her physical and psychological health.

  • Age of father: … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … …

  • Age of mother: … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … .. … … … … ......

  • Number and age of siblings … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … …

  • (+ Half-brothers and/or half-sisters) … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … …

  • Father’s occupation: … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … …

  • Mother’s occupation: … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … ....

  • Both parents live under the same roof?......................................

figure c

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Sznajder, M., Speranza, M., Guyot, C. et al. Depressive symptoms among teenagers in the emergency department: prevalence estimate and concordance with parental perceptions. Eur J Pediatr 172, 1587–1596 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00431-013-2060-1

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00431-013-2060-1

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