[Computer tomography, electroencephalography and neurologic findings in child and adolescent psychiatric syndromes]

Computed tomographic brain scan (CT) findings in 239 inpatients seen at a child psychiatry unit were rated in terms of type, location, and severity of brain damage. The rate of abnormalities found was 42%, which is consistent with the figures reported in the literature. There was only a small overlap between abnormal CT findings and abnormal findings in the electroencephalographic (EEG) or neurological examinations. Although abnormal CT findings were more frequent in children with certain diagnoses, i.e. those with psychoses or anorexia nervosa, no CT findings were characteristic of any group, thus indicating a quantitative rather than a qualitative difference. The fact that there was little overlap between CT scans and EEG or neurological findings suggests the need for more studies on diagnosing brain damage and on the relationship of brain damage to psychiatric symptoms.