Clinical trial NCT04559633: Cognitive and Behavioral Therapy in School Refusal
Official title: Anxious School Refusal in Adolescents: Efficiency of a Cognitive and Behavioral Therapy (CBT) Day Hospital Program
Study type: INTERVENTIONAL
Overall status: COMPLETED
Phase: NA
Conditions: Child Psychiatry
Adolescent
Anxious School Refusal
Cognitive Behavioral Therapy
Keywords: Anxious school refusal
anxiety disorders
CBT
treatment outcome
adolescents
Lead sponsor: University Hospital, Montpellier
Sponsor class: OTHER
First posted: 2020-09-23
Enrollment: 66
Sex: ALL
Minimum age (years): 10
Maximum age (years): 16
Standard ages: CHILD
Accepts healthy volunteers: no
Allocation: NA
Intervention model: SINGLE_GROUP
Primary purpose: TREATMENT

Brief summary: Anxious school refusal (ASR) is a common disorder which concerns more and more adolescents who are at worse completely absent from school. A specific ambulatory cognitive and behavioral therapy (CBT) program has been established to gradually reintegrate the child back into the school environment with a multidisciplinary team. Alongside school reintegration assessment, the child's overall ability to function and anxiety levels will be measured before and after the program with additional assessments made after a further 6 and 12 months have elapsed.

Detailed description: ASR concerns children and adolescents who feel anxiety about going to school. Some are totally absent, some just have difficulty remaining in school for the entire day, or go to school following behavioral problems such as morning tantrums or psychosomatic complaints. Anxiety disorders are the main diagnostic underlying this behavioral problem, with one or many anxiety disorders associated (i.e. separation anxiety disorder, panic disorder, social anxiety disorder, generalized anxiety disorder or specific phobia). ASR causes much distress to the child, the parents, and the school personnel and interferes with social and educational development. Children with severe or chronic school refusal appear to have a long-term risk of adult mental health issues (e.g. anxiety, depression). Studies about ASR are few, and nonexistent in France. ASR occurs in approximately 1% of all school-aged children, and 5% of all clinic-referred children, is equally common in both boys and girls but more frequent in adolescents. Recommendations for anxiety disorder treatment in youth is psychotherapy. CBT, especially exposure-based, is the intervention that is supported by numerous, randomized, controlled trials in this area. But concerning ASR, there are few studies.

A specific ambulatory therapeutic CBT program for totally absent from school adolescents is established within the children and adolescent psychiatric unit in the University Hospital of Montpellier, France. The unit has implemented CBT techniques to gradually reintegrate the child back into the school environment. This program will be implemented in 3 other child and adolescent psychiatry centers (Marseille, Béziers and Nîmes).

The main objective of this study is to evaluate the efficiency of a CBT program on the return back to school.

Secondary objectives are:

1. To evaluate the feasibility in implantation of this program
2. To describe the characteristics of adolescents
3. To assess the initial severity of mental disorders and the evolution of these disorders
4. To describe the evolution of patient anxiety
5. To describe the evolution of the overall functioning
6. To evaluate the efficiency on the return back to school at 6 and 12 month after intervention.

Eligibility criteria: Inclusion criteria:

* Adolescents between 10 and 16 years old registered in French college (6è to 3è),
* Anxious school refusal based on Berg's criteria,
* Completely dropped out from school (\>5 consecutive days of school nonattendance, absenteeism \< 12 months),
* Anxiety disorder as a principal diagnosis (DSM 5)(MINI -S KID),
* Adolescents want to return to school,
* Signed consent by parents and adolescents

Exclusion criteria:

* Intellectual disabilities
* Autism spectrum disorder
* Learning disabilities that causes emotional trouble and being the primary cause of teenagers dropping out of school.
* Conduct disorder (DSM 5)
* Ongoing psychotherapeutic care that the parents or the adolescent would not wish to suspend
* Participation in other ongoing research
* Pregnancy
* Patient not benefiting from a social security scheme

Primary outcomes:
measure: School continue reintegration
timeFrame: 46 months
Secondary outcomes:
measure: Types of anxiety disorders according to the DSM 5
timeFrame: 46 months
measure: Presence of comorbidities
timeFrame: 46 months
measure: Initial severity of mental disorders and the evolution of these disorders
timeFrame: 46 months
measure: Anxiety assessment
timeFrame: 46 months
measure: Anxiety assessment
timeFrame: 46 months
measure: Anxiety assessment
timeFrame: 46 months
measure: Global functioning
timeFrame: 46 months
measure: School attendance time month by month
timeFrame: 46 months
Other outcomes:
Locations:
city: Montpellier
country: France
facility: Montpellier University Hospital
Study officials:
affiliation: Montpellier University Hospital
name: Hélène DENIS
role: PRINCIPAL_INVESTIGATOR
References: