E117 - Pediatric Anxiety in the Aftermath of the Pandemic

What are the most critical components that need to be addressed about social wellbeing when it comes to children returning to school? What signs might alert parents to their children feeling anxious about returning to school? In this timely and important interview. Dr. Manpreet Singh and Dr. Jeffrey Strawn answer these questions and much more!

To access the article that Dr. Singh refers to in this episode click here: https://www.nytimes.com/2021/08/20/well/family/back-to-school-fear-tip.html

Dr. Manpreet K. Singh is Associate Professor of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, and leads a program aimed to accelerate understanding and treatment in youth with or at high risk for developing lifelong mood disorders.

Dr. Singh leads a multidisciplinary team that evaluates and treats youth with a spectrum of mood disorders as young as age 2 and well into their 20s. Her NIMH and industry funded studies examine mechanisms underlying mood disorders and apply cutting edge strategies to directly modulate the brain using transcranial magnetic stimulation and real time neurofeedback. She is also investigating the efficacy and safety of pharmacotherapies and psychotherapies, such as family focused psychotherapy and mindfulness meditation, to reduce mood symptoms and family stress. All of these areas of research aim to elucidate core mechanisms underlying mood disorders and how treatment early in life can pave the path to more adaptive outcomes.

Dr. Jeffrey Strawn is Associate Professor in the Department of Pediatrics and in the Department of Psychiatry and Behavior Science at the University of Cincinnati, College of Medicine in Cincinnati, OH. Dr. Jeffrey R. Strawn's early work examined the neurophysiology, neurochemistry and neuroanatomy of anxiety disorders in children and adolescents. 

In parallel with Dr. Strawn's work on the neurophysiology of mood and anxiety disorders in children and adolescents, he has worked to increase the evidence base for treatment interventions in youth. Using meta-analysis, he demonstrated that antidepressants are well-tolerated in pediatric patients with anxiety disorders, but also examined specific class-specific side effects (e.g., activation). Also, he has examined the unique tolerability of antidepressants in special populations of adolescents with depressive and anxiety disorders (e.g., those who are at high risk for the development of bipolar disorder) and has observed that antidepressants are poorly tolerated in this population with likelihood of antidepressant adverse events leading to discontinuation being directly related to age. Additionally, he has extensive expertise in the conduct of double blind, placebo-controlled trials in youth with anxiety disorders.