The relationship between response to treatment and perceived stress, childhood trauma and psychological resilience in anxiety disorders and attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder in adolescents: A comparative study from Türkiye

Abstract

Objective

In recent years, personalized treatments and factors affecting treatment response have gained importance in psychiatry. This study aimed to evaluate the effect of perceived stress, childhood trauma, and resilience levels on response to treatment in anxiety disorders (AD) and attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) in adolescents.

Method

A total of 202 adolescents were included in this study. The treatment response of patients with AD and ADHD who were diagnosed according to DSM-5 criteria and used pharmacological treatment was determined by using the Clinical Global Impression- Improvement scale in their control examinations. Forty patients with AD who responded to treatment (AD/Responder), 35 patients who did not respond (AD/Non-responder), 55 treatment responder patients with ADHD (ADHD/Responder), and 21 non-responder patients (ADHD/Non-responder), and 51 healthy controls (HC) were included in the study. They completed the Perceived Stress Scale (PSS), Childhood and Youth Resilience Measure-12 (CYRM-12), and Childhood Trauma Questionnaire (CTQ).

Results

The PSS score was found to be significantly lower in the ADHD/Responder group compared to AD/Responder and ADHD/Non-responder groups. The PSS score was lower, and CYRM-12 score was significantly higher in the ADHD/Responder and HC groups compared to the AD/Non-responder group. Emotional abuse scores, a subscale of CTQ, were considerably higher in the AD/Non-responder group compared to AD/Responder and ADHD/Responder. There were significant positive correlations between PSS and CTQ and its subscale scores; negative correlations were found between CYRM-12 and CTQ scores and CYRM-12 and PSS scores in groups.

Conclusions

There were considerable relationships between treatment response and resilience, perceived stress and emotional abuse in adolescents with AD and ADHD. In addition to drug treatments, resilience and stress-based interventions can be used to increase treatment response especially in AD.