Many common childhood psychiatric problems can disrupt transition to adulthood even if the problems do not persist, according to a study of 1,420 participants who were assessed with structured interviews up to 6 times during childhood (aged 9 to 16 years) for common psychiatric diagnoses and sub-threshold psychiatric problems. This disruption can occur even if the problems are sub-threshold. A total of 1,273 participants were assessed 3 times during young adulthood for adverse health outcomes. The study also found:

• Those with a childhood disorder had 6 times higher odds of at least 1 adverse adult outcome compared with those with no history of psychiatric problems.

• Those with a childhood disorder had 9 times higher odds of 2 or more adverse adult outcomes compared with those with no history of psychiatric problems.

• Those with sub-threshold psychiatric problems had 3 times higher odds of adverse outcomes and 5 times higher odds of 2 or more outcomes.

Citation: Copeland WE, Wolke D, Shanahan L, et al. Adult functional outcomes of common childhood psychiatric problems: A prospective, longitudinal study. JAMA Psychiatry. [Published online ahead of print July 15, 2015]. doi:10.1001/jamapsychiatry.2015.0730.