Depression in childhood

Abstract

Psychiatric clinicians may not be as aware of the possibility of depression in children as they are of other childhood conditions. Children's affective state and their developmental progress are very sensitive to the familial emotional environment. Marital discord, family psychopathology, and major losses are all importantly implicated in childhood depression. It behooves all psychiatrists to be attuned to the types of situations where childhood depression may be expected to develop and to be ready with strategies of intervention.