Risk Factors and Comorbidity in Childhood Specific Phobias

Abstract

This study aims to investigate possible risk factors associated with specific phobias in children andcomorbid mental disorders. Patients between 6–18 years of age who had presented to the childpsychiatry outpatient clinic at Bezmialem Vakif University between October 2017 and February2018 were assessed with The Kiddie Schedule for Affective Disorders and Schizophrenia-Presentversion (KSADS-P) for specific phobias and comorbid diagnoses. Risk factors of specific phobiawere further evaluated with a data collection tool, developed by the authors of the present study.The most common specific phobia subtype was animal phobia (n=48; 48%), which was followed bynatural environment (n=27; 27%), blood-injection (n=25; 25%), situational (n=17; 17%) and otherphobia (n=2; 2%). The majority of the subjects (n=59; 63.4%) reported that specific phobia beganbetween 3–7 years of age. While% 32 percent of subjects reported a sudden onset, for 40% theonset was slow and gradual. Majority of the participants (67.7%) were not able to identify a possibletrigger, whilst 25.3% reported that it started after a certain event. Only 10% of the participantshad reportedly sought treatment for phobia in the past. Subjects with animal phobia or situationalphobia had lower, blood/injection type phobia or natural environment type phobias had higherrates of comorbidity with an externalizing disorder as compared to the rest of the sample (?2=9.54,p=0.002 and ?2=11.51, p=0.001, ?2=6.00, p=0.014 and ?2=8.45, p=0.004; respectively). Inconclusion children and adolescents do not appear to seek help for specific phobias and such casescan be easily missed if not specifically enquired by clinicians.