Assessment of anxiety disorders in asthmatic children

The study's objective was to determine whether the State Trait Anxiety Inventory for Children, Trait version (STAIC), is suitable for the assessment of DSM-IV anxiety disorders in asthmatic children and adolescents. Ninety-two outpatients were given a semistructured diagnostic interview. They completed STAIC; another questionnaire about anxiety, the Echelle Comportementale d'Anxiété et de Peurs (ECAP); and the Child Depression Inventory. The parents filled in the Child Behavior Check-List (CBCL) and the Conners Parent Rating Scale (CPRS). A group of healthy children was assessed with STAIC. Thirty asthmatic children had anxiety disorders. They had significantly higher STAIC scores than the nonanxious asthmatic and the nonasthmatic children. STAIC scores were independent of age and sex and were correlated with ECAP, CPRS anxiety subscore, CBCL total score, internalizing score, and CBCL anxiety-depression subscore. Internal consistency was 0.75. With a threshold value of 34 for anxiety disorders, this method had a sensitivity of 73% and a specificity of 70%. STAIC was thus a useful method for anxiety disorder screening in a pediatric population.