The prevalence of mental disorders in school‐age children attending a general paediatric department in southern India

This study was conducted over a period of 18 months in a medical college hospital in southern India. Of 313 children of age 5 and above referred for detailed psychiatric evaluation, 101 were found to have a mental disorder according to DSM-III-R criteria; the remaining had organic disorders. Children above 8 years (74%) registered higher morbidity. There was no sex difference in overall morbidity. Precipitating factors were discernible in half of these cases, of which school-related problems were found in the majority. Almost two-thirds had multiple stressors, of which chronic family and social adversity (39%) and learning disabilities (28%) were common. Mental disorders were significantly related to urban background, middle-class socioeconomic status and literate parents compared with age- and sex-matched controls. There was no significant relationship with the type of family and number of siblings. Conversion disorder (31%) was the commonest, followed by conduct disorders (16%). The symptoms, stressors, response to treatment and the transcultural aspects are also discussed.