children s health issues
Depression and Mood Dysregulation Disorder in Children and Adolescents
Diagnosis
A visit with a doctor or behavioral health specialist Sometimes questionnaires about symptoms To diagnose depression, doctors rely on several sources of information, including an interview with the child or adolescent and information from parents and teachers. Sometimes doctors use Diagnosis to help distinguish depression from a normal reaction to an unhappy situation. Doctors diagnose a depressive disorder when children or adolescents have one or both of the following: A feeling of sadness or irritability Loss of interest or pleasure in almost all activities (often expressed as boredom) Also, children must have had these symptoms most of the day nearly every day during the same 2-week period, and they must have other symptoms of depression, such as loss of appetite and weight and problems sleeping. Doctors try to find out whether family or social stresses may have precipitated the depression. Doctors also ask specifically about suicidal behavior, including thoughts and talk about suicide. Doctors do tests to determine whether an abnormal thyroid gland or a substance use disorder is the cause of the symptoms. If adolescents have depression that persists and does not respond to usual treatments, doctors may do a spinal tap to check for a deficiency of folate in cerebrospinal fluid. 