The results revealed that findings are becoming increasingly nuanced with variations in levels of evidence related to ages of the children and characteristics of the specific treatment .
In addition , we focused our critique on generalization of treatment effects across setting s and time and on sample diversity ( with regard to ethnicity and levels of parent education ) in relation to the population .
Children of parents with higher levels of education than average appear to be overrepresented in the literature .
The purpose of this research was to up date the series of articles on evidence -based treatment for children and adolescents with attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder that have appeared in this journal ( Evans , Owens & Bunford , 2014 ; Pelham & Fabiano , 2008 ; Pelham , Wheeler , & Chronis , 1998 ) .
A Randomized Clinical Trial of an Integrative Group Therapy for Children With Severe Mood Dysregulation.
OBJECTIVE Nonepisodic irritability is a common and impairing problem , leading to the development of the diagnoses severe mood dysregulation ( SMD ) and disruptive mood dysregulation disorder ( DMDD ) . No psychosocial therapies have been formally evaluated for either , with medication being the most common treatment . This study examined the feasibility and efficacy of a joint parent-child intervention for SMD . METHOD A total of 68 participants aged 7 to 12 years with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder ( ADHD ) and SMD were r and omly assigned to the 11-week therapy or community-based psychosocial treatment . All participants were first stabilized on psychostimulant medication by study physicians . Of the participants , 56 still manifested impairing SMD symptoms and entered the therapy phase . Masked evaluators assessed participants at baseline , midpoint , and endpoint , with therapy participants reassessed 6 weeks later . RESULTS All but 2 therapy participants attended the majority of sessions ( n = 29 ) , with families reporting high levels of satisfaction . The primary outcome of change in mood symptoms using the Mood Severity Index ( MSI ) did not reach significance except in the subset attending the majority of sessions ( effect size = 0.53 ) . Therapy was associated with significantly greater improvement in parent-rated irritability ( effect size = 0.63 ) . Treatment effects for irritability but not MSI diminished after therapy stopped . Little impact on ADHD symptoms was seen . Results may not be generalizable to youth with SMD and comorbidities different from those seen in this sample of children with ADHD , and are limited by the lack of a gold st and ard for measuring change in SMD symptoms . CONCLUSION While failing to significantly improve mood symptoms versus community treatment , the integrative therapy was found to be a feasible and efficacious treatment for irritability in participants with SMD and ADHD . CLINICAL TRIAL REGISTRATION INFORMATION Group-Based Behavioral Therapy Combined With Stimulant Medication for Treating Children With Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder and Impaired Mood ; http:// clinical trials.gov/ ; NCT00632619
The results revealed that findings are becoming increasingly nuanced with variations in levels of evidence related to ages of the children and characteristics of the specific treatment .
In addition , we focused our critique on generalization of treatment effects across setting s and time and on sample diversity ( with regard to ethnicity and levels of parent education ) in relation to the population .
Children of parents with higher levels of education than average appear to be overrepresented in the literature .
The purpose of this research was to up date the series of articles on evidence -based treatment for children and adolescents with attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder that have appeared in this journal ( Evans , Owens & Bunford , 2014 ; Pelham & Fabiano , 2008 ; Pelham , Wheeler , & Chronis , 1998 ) .