Related Experiment Video

Updated: Jan 21, 2026

Influence of Emotional Factors on the Efficacy of Acupuncture Treatment for Overweight Complicated with Hyperlipidemia: A Retrospective Cohort Study
03:05

Influence of Emotional Factors on the Efficacy of Acupuncture Treatment for Overweight Complicated with Hyperlipidemia: A Retrospective Cohort Study

Published on: November 21, 2025

496

Behavior Modification Is Associated With Reduced Psychotropic Medication Use in Children With Aggression in Inpatient

Gabrielle A Carlson1, Jaclyn Chua1, Katherine Pan1

  • 1Renaissance School of Medicine at Stony Brook University, Stony Brook, NY.

Journal of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry
|August 6, 2019
PubMed

Insights

A behavior modification program (BMP) significantly reduced the need for PRN (pro re nata, or "as needed") psychotropic medication and seclusion/restraint/holds (S/R/H) in hospitalized children with aggression. Discontinuing the BMP led to increased PRN and S/R/H use.

Area of Science:

  • Child and Adolescent Psychiatry
  • Behavioral Psychology
  • Pediatric Hospital Management

Background:

  • Limited data exist for managing aggression in hospitalized children.
  • Existing studies often overlook crucial factors like setting, age, sex, diagnosis, admission reason, or interventions.
  • Seclusion, restraint, and physical holds (S/R/H) are frequently the sole outcome measures.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To examine changes in PRN (pro re nata, or "as needed") psychotropic medication use for severe aggression in a children's psychiatric inpatient unit.
  • To compare PRN medication use rates before and after the discontinuation of a behavior modification program (BMP).

Main Methods:

  • A comparative study analyzing 661 children (aged 5-12 years) across 5 cohorts over 10 years.
  • Primary outcome: PRN use per 1,000 patient-days. Secondary outcome: S/R/H rates.
  • Predictors analyzed: BMP status, child and adolescent psychiatrist (CAP) oversight, diagnosis, age, length of stay, and neuroleptic use.

Main Results:

  • Children admitted for aggression predominantly had externalizing disorders (79%).
  • PRN use was significantly lower (p < .001) when the BMP was present (163/1000 patient-days) versus absent (483/1000 patient-days).
  • BMP absence, neuroleptic treatment, younger age, and half-time CAP oversight predicted higher PRN use.

Conclusions:

  • A behavior modification program (BMP) demonstrated effectiveness in reducing PRN medication and S/R/H rates in young hospitalized children with externalizing disorders.
  • The findings support the implementation of BMPs to manage aggression in pediatric psychiatric inpatient settings.
Abstract

Keywords:
PRNaggressionbehavior modificationseclusion

More Related Videos

Studying Aggression in Drosophila fruit flies11:06

Studying Aggression in Drosophila fruit flies

Published on: February 25, 2007

16.6K
Boldness, Aggression, and Shoaling Assays for Zebrafish Behavioral Syndromes08:43

Boldness, Aggression, and Shoaling Assays for Zebrafish Behavioral Syndromes

Published on: August 29, 2016

10.9K

Related Concept Videos

Aggression01:47

Aggression

Humans engage in aggression when they seek to cause harm or pain to another person. Aggression takes two forms depending on one’s motives: hostile or instrumental. Hostile aggression is motivated by feelings of anger with intent to cause pain; a fight in a bar with a stranger is an example of hostile aggression. In contrast, instrumental aggression is motivated by achieving a goal and does not necessarily involve intent to cause pain (Berkowitz, 1993); a contract killer who murders for...
30.1K
Behavior Modification01:21

Behavior Modification

Behavioral approaches have often been criticized for ignoring mental processes and focusing solely on observable behavior. However, these approaches provide an optimistic perspective for individuals seeking to change their behaviors. Rather than concentrating on intrinsic personality traits, behavioral approaches suggest that even longstanding habits can be modified by changing the reward contingencies that maintain them.
A real-world application of operant conditioning principles is applied...
575
Histone Modification02:32

Histone Modification

The histone proteins have a flexible N-terminal tail extending out from the nucleosome. These histone tails are often subjected to post-translational modifications such as acetylation, methylation, phosphorylation, and ubiquitination. Particular combinations of these modifications form “histone codes” that influence the chromatin folding and tissue-specific gene expression.
Acetylation
The enzyme histone acetyltransferase adds acetyl group to the histones. Another enzyme, histone...
16.0K
Histone Modification02:32

Histone Modification

4.4K
Spreading of Chromatin Modifications02:25

Spreading of Chromatin Modifications

The histone proteins in the nucleosomes are post-translationally modified (PTM) to increase or decrease access to DNA. The commonly observed PTMs are methylation, acetylation, phosphorylation, and ubiquitination of lysine amino acids in the histone H3 tail region. These histone modifications have specific meaning for the cell. Hence, they are called "histone code". The protein complex involved in histone modification is termed as "reader-writer" complex.
Writers
The writer...
9.3K
Inhaled Medications01:23

Inhaled Medications

Inhaled medications are crucial for managing chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and asthma. They are essential for effective treatment and control, ensuring optimal respiratory health and well-being. Inhaled medication delivers drugs directly to the lungs, providing a rapid onset of action and reducing systemic side effects compared to oral or injectable medications. Three primary types of inhalation devices are used to administer these medications: nebulizers, metered-dose inhalers...
761