scholarly journals Mutual relationships between head injury and conduct problems in children aged 9 months to 14 years in the UK Millennium Cohort Study

Author(s):  
Valerie Brandt ◽  
Charlotte Hall ◽  
Hedwig Eisenbarth ◽  
James Hall

Background: Research suggests a link between acquired head injury and signs of conduct disorder, with a majority of findings based on retrospective reports and comparison samples. The relationship between head injuries and conduct problems and how they may influence one another during development is currently unclear. This study aimed to investigate direct and indirect associations between head injury and conduct problems through to early adolescence. Methods: Data from the UK Millennium Cohort Study was used to investigate the relationship between conduct problems as assessed by the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire and parent reported head injury over time, at ages 9 months, 3, 5, 7, 11 and 14 years, using a cross-lagged path analysis. This is data from 18,552 children, participating in a UK cohort study that is representative of the UK population. We included 7,041 (3,308 male) children, who had full information about head injuries and conduct problems at age 14. Results: We found a mutual association between childhood head injuries and conduct problems but with distinct timings: Head injury between 5-7 years predicted greater chance of conduct problems at age 11 and 14 years, while greater conduct problems at 5 years predicted a significantly greater chance of a head injury at age 7-11 years. Conclusions: These findings have important implications for the timing of preventive and ameliorative interventions. Prior to school entry, interventions aiming to reduce conduct problems would appear most effective at reducing likelihood of head injuries in future years. However, equivalent interventions targeting head injuries would be better timed either as children are entering formal primary education, or soon after they have entered.

2021 ◽  
pp. e1-e9
Author(s):  
Dylan B. Jackson ◽  
Alexander Testa ◽  
Rebecca L. Fix ◽  
Tamar Mendelson

Objectives. To explore associations between police stops, self-harm, and attempted suicide among a large, representative sample of adolescents in the United Kingdom. Methods. Data were drawn from the 3 most recent sweeps of the UK Millennium Cohort Study (MCS), from 2012 to 2019. The MCS is an ongoing nationally representative contemporary birth cohort of children born in the United Kingdom between September 2000 and January 2002 (n = 10 345). Weights were used to account for sample design and multiple imputation for missing data. Results. Youths experiencing police stops by the age of 14 years (14.77%) reported significantly higher rates of self-harm (incidence rate ratio = 1.52; 95% confidence interval [CI] = 1.35, 1.69) at age 17 years and significantly higher odds of attempted suicide (odds ratio = 2.25; 95% CI = 1.84, 2.76) by age 17 years. These patterns were largely consistent across examined features of police stops and generally did not vary by sociodemographic factors. In addition, 17.73% to 40.18% of associations between police stops and outcomes were explained by mental distress. Conclusions. Police-initiated encounters are associated with youth self-harm and attempted suicide. Youths may benefit when school counselors or social workers provide mental health screenings and offer counseling care following these events. (Am J Public Health. Published online ahead of print September 23, 2021: e1–e9. https://doi.org/10.2105/AJPH.2021.306434 )


Thorax ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 74 (6) ◽  
pp. 607-610 ◽  
Author(s):  
Anthony A Laverty ◽  
Filippos T Filippidis ◽  
David Taylor-Robinson ◽  
Christopher Millett ◽  
Andrew Bush ◽  
...  

We used data from 11 577 children in the UK Millennium Cohort Study, collected at approximately 14 years of age (early teens), to assess characteristics associated with smoking, and generated regional estimates of numbers of smokers. 13.8% of UK early teens studied had ever smoked; 1.9% were current smokers. This corresponds to 2 28 136 and 39 653 (13–14 year olds) in the UK, respectively. Ever smoking risk increased if caregivers (26.0% vs 10.9%) or friends smoked (35.1% vs 4.0%), with a dose–response effect for friends’ smoking. Caregiver and peer-group smoking remain important drivers of child smoking uptake and thus important targets for intervention.


2018 ◽  
Vol 104 (3) ◽  
pp. 268-274 ◽  
Author(s):  
Steven Hope ◽  
Jessica Deighton ◽  
Nadia Micali ◽  
Catherine Law

ObjectiveWe assessed whether maternal mental health problems increased rates for child injury during the preschool years and mid-childhood, and the extent to which associations could be accounted for by a range of potential explanatory factors.DesignWe analysed the UK Millennium Cohort Study, a nationally representative sample with data collected throughout childhood. Multinomial regression was used to investigate whether two measures of maternal mental health (diagnosed depression/anxiety and psychological distress) were associated with subsequent childhood injury. Models adjusted for sociodemographics, parenting and child externalising behaviours.Main outcome measureMaternal report of unintentional injuries (none, 1, 2+) recorded at three data collection periods (3–5 years; 5–7 years; 7–11 years).ResultsThe analytic sample comprised n=9240 families who participated 3–11 years with complete data on exposures and outcomes (multiply imputing missing covariates). Exposure to maternal mental health problems was associated with increased rates of subsequent childhood injuries. Associations attenuated after adjustment for potential explanatory factors, although they remained elevated. For example, high maternal distress was associated with injuries 3–5 years (adjusted relative risk ratio (aRRR): 1 injury=1.18, 95% CI 0.86 to 1.61; 2+ injuries=2.22, 95% CI 1.22 to 4.02); injuries 5–7 years (aRRR: 1 injury=1.31, 95% CI 0.97 to 1.76; 2+ injuries=1.84, 95% CI 1.09 to 3.09); and injuries 7–11 years (aRRR: 1 injury=1.03, 95% CI 0.81 to 1.31; 2+ injuries=1.33, 95% CI 0.97 to 1.81).ConclusionsChildren exposed to mothers with mental health problems had higher rates of childhood injury than those not exposed. If further investigation of this association suggests causality then it will be important to test measures that address mothers’ mental health issues with a view to reducing injuries among their children.


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