Child & Adolescent Mental Health: A Practical, All-in-One Guide

Those who work with troubled or special needs kids often find themselves challenged not just to understand why some children behave the way they do, but how best to treat them.

Enter Jess P. Shatkin’s new book, Child & Adolescent Mental Health: A Practical, All-in-One Guide. Organized much like the DSM, Shatkin, who is an associate professor of child and adolescent psychiatry and pediatrics at the NYU Child Study Center, explores the etiology, prevalence, course, and treatment of each of the major mental disorders of childhood and adolescence. Providing an unrivaled composition of data — and probably the most up-to-date review of the research — he offers an indispensable guide to anyone who wants to better understand and help children.

While such a breadth of knowledge could be tiresome, Shatkin’s work is just the opposite. The writing is clear and concise, and the insights are not only useful, but fascinating. For example, in discussing the etiology of ADHD, Shatkin writes, “The etiology of ADHD is not clear, but research increasingly points to the cause of the disorder as neurological with limited environmental influence.” On the topic of anxiety disorders, he tells us that while some children are naturally shy, development of anxiety comes from behavioral inhibition, which is the tendency to show fear and avoidance in novel situations.

Shatkin provides multiple assessment tools to accurately diagnose each disorder. Rating scales, he writes, such as the Gillian Autism Scale, can be used to differentiate Autism from Asperger’s, or learning disabilities. On the other hand, identifying schizophrenia and psychosis begins with questions such as “Does it ever feel like songs on the radio or shows on the TV are being put there just for you?” Substance abuse — which he tells us occurs in individuals who “generally have a lower number of dopamine receptors” — can be weeded out through the use of the CRAFFT Screening Protocol.

Shatkin then presents us with the most current clinical studies on treatment for each disorder. Reviewing which treatments work, and which ones may even be harmful, he provides guidelines for the best course of action for each diagnosis. In the case of anorexia nervosa, for example, Shatkin writes that we must focus on three key issues: restoring weight, modifying distorted eating behavior, and addressing the family and psychological issues.

In many cases, the first line of attack consists of interventions aimed at the parents. “Mothers with MDD [major depressive disorder] and their children have been studied extensively,” Shatkin writes, “and we now know that effective treatment of such mothers is associated with a reduction in anxiety, depression, and disruptive behavior in their children.”

Some treatments may include a medication component, and Shatkin provides an exhaustive review of the most common pharmacological interventions. In his discussion of the comorbidity of ADHD and bipolar, for instance, he writes that it is “reasonable to wonder about the possibility of inducing mania or mood instability by giving stimulant treatment to a bipolar child.” However, Shatkin writes, “as numerous studies have shown, bipolar children and adolescents with ADHD generally respond favorably to stimulants and are not likely to be pushed into a manic episode.”

It is clearheaded gems of wisdom like this that set Shatkin’s book apart. Not only is it an all-encompassing review of our current understanding of child and adolescent psychopathology, but a handbook full of the most effective and evidence-based practices to treat them.

Child & Adolescent Mental Health: A Practical, All-in-One Guide
W. W. Norton & Company, June 2015
Paperback, 512 pages
$28.95