Tasha Howe has been having trouble posting to TIPS, and asked me to post this reply:
The DC 0-3 (see www.zerotothree.org) already has such a diagnosis that is much more based on developmental psychopathology conceptualizations of "disorder" as occurring in developing organisms who exist within dynamic contexts. It is a diagnosis more along the lines of "maltreatment reaction" so the focus is not on what's wrong with the child, but how the child is adjusting to the context of his/her life, over which he/she has no control. The DSM is finally understanding that static categorical approaches to mental illness will not work, ESPECIALLY for children! For another more developmetnally based diagnostic system, see the DSM-PC for primary care physicians which includes the DSM diagnoses, and describes a continuum from "normal developmental variations" to "subclinical problems." The DSM is woefully inadequate in this regard. Too bad we have to wait until 2012 for the new DSM. The existing method of assessment, diagnosis, and treatment controlled by the insurance industry has led to the denial of services for traumatized children who do not meet arbitrary DSM diagnostic criteria cut-offs for PTSD...don't get me started! Tasha R. Howe, Ph.D Associate Professor of Psychology Humboldt State University Arcata, CA 95521 (707) 826-3759; Fax (707) 826-4993 email: [EMAIL PROTECTED] personal webpage: http://www.humboldt.edu/~psych/fs/howe/howe.htm ----- Original Message ----- From: Beth Benoit To: Teaching in the Psychological Sciences (TIPS) Sent: Saturday, April 28, 2007 4:50 PM Subject: [tips] Developmental trauma disorder/DTD Of interest to those involved with Child Development, regarding children who "suffer serious and often repeated traumas": Below is a quote, the original link from APA Monitor, and a short descriptive summary. While PTSD is a good definition for acute trauma in adults, it doesn't apply well to children, who are often traumatized in the context of relationships," says Boston University Medical Center psychiatrist Bessel van der Kolk, MD, one of the group's co-leaders. "Because children's brains are still developing, trauma has a much more pervasive and long-range influence on their self-concept, on their sense of the world and on their ability to regulate themselves." Being discussed for possible inclusion in DSM-5: http://www.apa.org/monitor/mar07/diagnosis.html "...no one diagnosis adequately captures the plight of these youngsters, and that's why a new diagnosis is needed for them, asserts a working group of child psychiatrists and psychologists developing such a diagnosis for possible inclusion in the 2011 iteration of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, the DSM-5, published by the American Psychiatric Association. As it stands now, these children are often misdiagnosed and incorrectly treated, working group members argue. The team is an interest group of the National Child Traumatic Stress Network, a consortium of 70 child mental health centers founded and funded by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration that brings together clinicians who work with children who have complex trauma histories. To fill the gap, the group is proposing a diagnosis called "developmental trauma disorder" or DTD, to capture what members see as central realities of life for these children: exposure to multiple, chronic traumas, usually of an interpersonal nature; a unique set of symptoms that differs from those of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and a variety of other labels often applied to such children (see "Current trauma diagnoses"); and the fact that these traumas affect children differently depending on their stage of development." Beth Benoit Granite State College Plymouth State University New Hampshire --- To make changes to your subscription go to: http://acsun.frostburg.edu/cgi-bin/lyris.pl?enter=tips&text_mode=0&lang=english --- To make changes to your subscription go to: http://acsun.frostburg.edu/cgi-bin/lyris.pl?enter=tips&text_mode=0&lang=english
