Schizophrenia In Childhood: Unusual Yet Troubling
The last thing a parent wants is to consider the possibility that their child may have some type of mental illness or brain disorder. Yet, it’s important that parents not ignore symptoms of schizophrenia in children if they see them. While most people are diagnosed in their mid-to-late-twenties, there are still cases of children as young as seven exhibiting the signs of schizophrenia. It’s child’s play to have an imaginary friend, but it’s a red flag if a child hears voices saying nasty things about him/her or remarks that there are voices conversing in his/her head. Kids who have no interest in friendships, who talk to themselves frequently or stares at things that are not really there may have schizophrenia.
The signs of schizophrenia are rarely observed in children, but statistics show that 1 in 40,000 children are diagnosed with this problem. Comparatively, 1 in 100 adults aged 18-35 are diagnosed with some kind of schizophrenia. Schizophrenia in children has certain comparable qualities to autism and developmental disabilities. However, only schizophrenia demonstrates the hallucinations and delusions that characterize the condition. Many children also display subdued emotional processes, dislike of social situations, inattentiveness to their hygiene and elevated sensitivity.
Sometimes the symptoms of schizophrenia first appear in childhood but the official onset doesn’t occur until adulthood. One 30-year longitudinal research project studying 4,000 people born within the same week in 1946 found some striking developmental patterns in children who were later diagnosed with paranoid schizophrenia. For instance, most of them learned to sit, stand and walk later than normal. Compared to their peers, they were twice as likely to have speech disorders by age six and play alone as children. These kids also showed extreme fear and extreme anger growing up and moved strangely.
Far too often, children are given a wrong diagnosis of schizophrenia. Hallucinations and delusions are symptoms that distinguish it from something like autism. These are not one-time events, but will continue for no less than six months. Generally a child begins to demonstrate symptoms at age 7, whereas an autistic child is more typically diagnosed by age 3. At times the hyper fits of severe schizophrenia are mistaken for a dissociative, personality or bipolar disorder. Most youngsters with this condition display no interest in friendship.
Currently, the outlook is not very bright for children showing symptoms of schizophrenia. Many of the antipsychotic medications on the market do not have documentation of clinical trials tested on children. Studies show that anywhere from 15 – 45% of young patients show little to no response to traditional medications, like haloperidol, loxapine, thioridazine or thiothixene. A new generation of antipsychotic drugs, like clozapine, risperidone and olanzapine show some promise, but more studies need to be conducted to determine long-term risks of taking such drugs. Short-term side effects include weight gain and sedation, but the risk of decreased white blood cell count, seizures and heart disease are yet to be measured with certainty.
There are many different types of schizophrenia, but paranoid type schizophrenia is by far the most common. It is considered a chronic mental illness that can severely interfere with the patient’s ability to think and interact with others. Click here to learn more about schizophrenia disorder.