Faculty Bibliography

To test the differential validity of the posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) classification, 3 groups of youths (PTSD, traumatized PTSD negatives, and controls) were examined. Youth with major comorbid disorders were excluded. On the basis of an analysis of parent-derived Child Behavior Checklist (CBCL) ratings, significant variations in CBCL scores were associated with PTSD but not with exposure to exceptional stress in the absence of PTSD. The results also indicated that traumatic exposure without the development of PTSD was not associated with higher estimates of psychopathology

The Children's posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) Inventory (P. A. Saigh, 1998) was administered to 76 traumatized and 28 nontraumatized youths (aged 7.08-18.74 yrs). Children's posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) Inventory diagnoses were compared to the Diagnostic Interview for Children and Adolescents-Revised and Structured Clinical Interview for Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders PTSD diagnoses. Results indicate moderate to high sensitivity, specificity, positive and negative predictive power, and diagnostic efficiency were evidenced across criterion measures. Convergent validity was evidenced by significant correlations with the Revised Children's Manifest Anxiety Scale, Children's Depression Inventory, Child Behavior Checklist Internalizing scale, and the Junior Eysenck Personality Inventory Neuroticism scale. Discriminant validity was observed through nonsignificant correlations with the Child Behavior Checklist Externalizing and the Junior Eysenck Personality Inventory Extraversion scales.

Information involving the development of the DSM-IV version of the Children's PTSD Inventory is described. Independent ratings by highly experienced judges denote that the instrument encompassed the universe of definition that it was intended to measure (i.e., the DSM-IV criteria for PTSD). The instrument was administered to 82 traumatized and 22 nontraumatized youths at Bellevue Hospital. Moderate to high Cronbach alphas (.53-.89) were evident at the subtest level. An alpha of .95 was evident at the diagnostic level. In terms of inter-rater reliability, 98.1% agreement was evident at the diagnostic level. Inter-rater intraclass correlation coefficients (ICCs) ranged from .88 to .96 at the subtest level and .98 at the diagnostic level. Good to excellent kappas (.66-1.00) were reported for inter-rater reliability at the subtest level. An inter-rater reliability kappa of .96 was evident at the diagnostic level. In terms of test-retest reliability, 97.6% agreement was evident at the diagnostic level. Good to excellent test-retest kappas (.66-1.00) and ICCs (.66-.94) were observed. A test-retest kappa of .91 and an ICC of .88 was observed at the diagnostic level

Videotapes of autistic children with stereotypies and/or neuroleptic-related dyskinesias were shown to three experienced raters blind to the children's medication treatment status and history, if any, of neuroleptic exposure. Upon observation of the videotapes, stereotypies and neuroleptic-related dyskinesias were not well differentiated from each other. These results emphasize the importance of assessing and documenting baseline abnormal movements before patients receive neuroleptic therapy. Meticulous baseline evaluation, integral to all patient care, is of particular concern in treating patient populations that often show abnormal movements unrelated to neuroleptic exposure. Such movements can be mistaken clinically for neuroleptic-related dyskinesias and, in the absence of baseline data for comparison, can be misdiagnosed as such