Preconception Predictors Of Health, Behaviour And Emotional Adjustment At Seven Years
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$1,170,830.00
Summary
An understanding of the importance of a healthy start to life has underpinned major health policies including Australia’s National Agenda for Early Childhood. The capacity of parents to provide that healthy start has received little study. The present project investigates the extent to which parental lifestyle, social and emotional adjustment prior to conception predictor emotional problems, disruptive behaviour and health in their children at seven years.
Rates Of Psychosis Onset In A High Risk Population
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$310,359.00
Summary
Older studies of people at risk of schizophrenia found that about 35% of them developed psychosis within 1 year. However the risk has decreased lately to as low as 10%. They may still become psychotic but take longer to do so, or they may not develop psychosis at all. We need to study this so that those not “at risk” are not needlessly treated. We will follow up “at risk” people and determine their 6 year outcome. We will do scans to see if there are any brain changes associated with psychosis.
Motor problems, ranging from clumsiness to cerebral palsy, are one of the most common adverse outcomes in children born early. This study will investigate the motor development of children born <30 weeks’ gestation compared with peers born at term from birth to 5 years. We will determine whether early clinical evaluations or neuroimaging in the newborn period can predict later motor impairment at 5 years to be able to identify those who will benefit most from early intervention.
Attention deficit hyperactivity disorde(ADHD) is the most prevalent mental disorder of childhood affecting around 7.5% of Australian school age children. The disorder is strongly genetic and causes significant impairments in academic functioning, family and peer relations with sufferers at increased risk for drug abuse. Identification and characterisation of rare mutations will enhance our knowledge of the neurobiology and advance the search for next generation drug treatments for the disorder.
Cellular Modelling Of Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) Risk Genes
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$753,746.00
Summary
Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder is a prevalent behavioural disorder affecting 7.4% of Australian children and adolescents. It has a strong genetic component with high heritability estimates (75–90%) comparable to other serious mental illness such as autism and schizophrenia. Identification and functional characterization of the genetic causes of this disorder will enhance our knowledge of its neurobiology and revolutionise the drug treatment of the disorder.
Does The Treatment Of Anxiety In Children With ADHD Improve Outcomes? A Large-scale Randomised Controlled Trial
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$854,630.00
Summary
Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) affects 5% of Australian children. Up to 64% of children with ADHD experience impairing anxiety, which is associated with higher levels of ADHD symptoms and poorer quality of life. This randomised controlled trial will determine whether treating anxiety in children with ADHD improves outcomes.
Improving Quality Of Life In Late Stage Bipolar Disorder: RCT Of A Novel Psychological Treatment
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$1,083,620.00
Summary
Hundreds of thousands of Australians have bipolar disorder and receive minimal benefit from existing drug and psychological treatments. ORBIT 2.0 is a new low-intensity online treatment using mindfulness strategies to improve quality of life in this poorly served ‘late stage’ group. Pilot testing suggests ORBIT is effective. This project will refine the intervention and is expected to confirm its clinical and cost effectiveness prior to international roll-out.
Towards An Evidence-based And Equitable Mental Health System For Children In Australia
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$706,059.00
Summary
Mental health problems in Australian children are common and associated with adverse short and long term outcomes. Treatments including medication and psychological interventions can improve these outcomes but only 50% of Australian children with mental health problems receive them. We will quantify child, family, clinician and health care system factors associated with treatment use and provide a roadmap for clinicians and policy makers to improve access for Australian children.
Impact Of A Sleep Intervention In ADHD: Translational Randomised Trial
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$1,020,595.00
Summary
Up to 50% of children with ADHD experience sleep problems which worsen their ADHD symptoms, behaviour, quality of life and day to day functioning. In a previous trial, we showed that treating sleep problems in children with ADHD improves these outcomes. We now want to know if these benefits can be replicated when general paediatrcians and psychologists deliver the same sleep intervention in community settings.
A Dimensional Approach To Mapping The Risk Mechanisms Of Mental Illness
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$1,677,975.00
Summary
There is ongoing debate about whether current definitions of mental disorders are accurate. We will use statistical techniques to identify the core dimensions of liability for mental illness, and map how genes and brain organization drive differences between people along each dimension.