Book Description

Pediatric Psychopharmacology: Principles and Practice is an authoritative and comprehensive text on the use of medication in the treatment of children and adolescents with serious neuropsychiatric disorders. This benchmark volume consists of 56 chapters written by internationally recognized leaders, and is divided into four interrelated sections. The first, Biological Bases of Pediatric Psychopharmacology, reviews key principles of neurobiology and the major psychiatric illnesses of childhood from a perspective rooted in developmental psychopathology. The second, Somatic Interventions, presents the major classes of psychiatric drugs, as well as complementary and alternative somatic interventions, such as electroconvulsive therapy (ECT), transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS), and naturopathic approaches. The third and longest section, Assessment and Treatment,starts with clinical assessment, diagnostic evaluation, and comprehensive treatment planning, and goes on to cover the evidence-based analysis of drug treatments for the major disorders. Special populations (such as children with comorbid mental retardation, substance abuse or medical illness) are specifically discussed, and the coordination of their treatment with non-somatic therapies is explicitly addressed. The final section, Epidemiologic, Research, and Methodological Considerations, deals with broad population-relevant topics such as regulation and policy, pharmacoepidemiology, and the critical importance of sound ethical principles for clinical investigation. The book concludes with an appendix on generic and commercial drug name equivalencies, preparations, and available dosages. This timely text is intended for child and adolescent psychiatrists, general and developmental pediatricians, family practitioners, general psychiatrists, and other mental health professionals who work with children and adolescents.