Algesic manifestations of depression in children and adolescents
Under conditions of a general somatic hospital were examined 148 children and adolescents at the age of 3-16 years with different algesic manifestations (cephalgias, myalgias, cardialgias). In all the patients there were depressive disorders of neurotic level of different degree of severity. In dependence on the primary affective disorder, ive propose a typology of the depressions that distinguish asthenic, anxious, melancholic and combined (asthenic-anxious, anxious-melancholic) variations. Differential therapy of 89 patients was performed taking into a consideration both the role of depression in pathogenesis of algesias and typologic variations of depressive disorders. Symptomatic treatment was administered to 59 patients. In group with pathogenetic (antidepressive) therapy either recovery or considerable improvement was achieved in 70.8% of the cases; meanwhile considerable improvement was found only in 6.8% of the patients from a group with symptomatic treatment.