Question:
Good friends of mine have a child who is 9 years old and has been
seeing a psychiatrist for quite a while now. He diagnosed him with
Attention Deficit Disorder, but to me, it looks different. I know some
children with ADHD and he does not ast like them. Of course, I am not
qualified in any of this, Currently, he is not taking any medication because his parents want
to be sure of his problem and not treat him blindly. Also, those
episode happens slightly less often now that he is seeing a therapist
with his parents.
His mom's brother is
manic-depressive, and it struck me that what if the little boy
suffers from the same thing? Also, one of the father's sister did
suffer from a major depression at one point in her life.
Answer:
Here are a wealth of resources for support and differential diagnoses
between
BP, ADD, and ADHD -- which have similar characteristics in younger
children. A good overall reference on ADD and ADHD in children:
http://www.adhdnews.com
Diagnosing Bipolar Versus ADHD in Children:
http://www.adhdnews.com/bipolar.htm
Hit Adolescent Bipolar Illness Early and Hard:
http://www.medscape.com/IMNG/ClinPsychNews/1997/v25.n12/cpn2512.19.01.ht
ml
Bipolar Disorders (296) Vs. Attention Deficit Disorders (314):
http://www.addclinic.com/296.html
The American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry:
http://www.aacap.org/web/aacap
If the following site were ever to be completed, it shows promise.
The World Wide Handbook on Child and Youth Psychiatry:
http://web.inter.nl.net/hcc/T.Compernolle/contents.htm
The following site has a wealth of links dealing with mental health
issues of children:
http://members.aol.com/DrgnKpr1/BPCAT.html
With regard to BPAD in the young, I have found that ADHD can be comorbid
with it. If left untreated, these conditions can persist into adulthood, and
become much more troublesome...I am living proof of that, though (happily)
the symptoms are less pronounced for me now.
