Schizophrenia in Children

Schizophrenia is a severe psychiatric condition that rarely affects children. The illness is difficult to diagnose, because the initial symptoms are mild. These early symptoms include gradual withdrawal from relationships and isolation. There is no cure for schizophrenia, but a variety of treatments are available to help control its symptoms.

Finding a cause may help treatment

There is no known cause for schizophrenia. Doctors believe that certain people are genetically susceptible to the disease, which develops after specific stresses activate the illness. These stresses are believed to occur during fetal development or childhood. Schizophrenics suffer from abnormal brain chemistry and often have an abnormal brain structure.

Unusual symptoms affect schizophrenics

Schizophrenic children and adolescents suffer hallucinations, paranoia, confusion, extreme moodiness, severe anxiety, isolation and other similar types of symptoms. These children often withdrawal from social and family relationships, often behave and speak in an odd way and fail to take care of personal hygiene. They often say things that do not make sense, and teachers are sometimes the first to notice that something is wrong with the child.

Children require special treatment

Children who show signs of schizophrenia need evaluation by a trained child psychiatrist. It is best to have a psychiatrist who understands the how the mental illness affects children. A mixture of medication, therapy and behavioral treatments is used to control symptoms. The child's physician and psychiatrist must monitor medication and its effects carefully. A withdrawn child may need to attend specialized activities.

This severe psychiatric disorder does not affect children often, but it is often devastating when it does. A child psychiatrist can help control the symptoms of schizophrenia and coordinate medication and other forms of treatment.