Psychotropic Medications Use among Children with Autism in Saudi Arabia
Abstract
:1. Introduction
2. Methods
2.1. Data Source and Sampling
2.2. Survey Description
2.2.1. Family Characteristics
2.2.2. Child Characteristics
2.2.3. Parents Report of Severity of Symptoms
2.2.4. Use of Medication
3. Analysis
4. Results
4.1. Submissions
4.2. Sample Characteristics
4.3. Use of Medications
4.4. Factors Associated with the Current Use of Medications
4.5. Factors Associated with Past Use of Medications
5. Discussion
6. Limitations
7. Future Implications
8. Conclusions
Author Contributions
Funding
Institutional Review Board Statement
Informed Consent Statement
Data Availability Statement
Acknowledgments
Conflicts of Interest
References
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Characteristics | n (%) |
---|---|
Child | |
Age of the child, mean | 8.1 (4%) |
Sex: male % | 236 (80.5%) |
Parental Concerns Questionnaire (PCQ) Items | |
Anxiety symptom (Gets anxious in new places) | 111 (42.7%) |
Sleep disturbance (My baby is not sleeping easily or sleeping intermittently) | 137 (52.6%) |
Aggression (My child hits or bites others) | 195 (74.8%) |
Hyperactivity (My child is moving or running or continuously jumps) | 74 (28.4%) |
Inattentiveness (My child is having a hard time completing the tasks assigned to him) | 62 (23.9%) |
Irritability (My child changes moods / emotions) | 73 (28.0%) |
Communication issue (My child does not use words or finds it difficult to initiate talking to others) | 58 (22.2%) |
Inflexibility, routine maintenance (My child always completes routines in the same way) | 93 (35.5%) |
Sensitivity (My child is sensitive to light and sounds) | 109 (41.7%) |
Feeding problem (My child only eats certain types of food) | 88 (33.7%) |
Social difficulties (My child prefers to be alone or have few friends) | 73 (28.0%) |
Repetitive movement (My toddler is shaking or flapping their hands) | 113 (43.4%) |
Comorbidities (descriptive analysis) | 175 (59.7) |
No comorbidities | 118 (40.3%) |
ADHD | 133 (45.4%) |
Intellectual disability | 47 (16%) |
Epilepsy | 17 (5.8%) |
Others | 26 (9.9%) |
Paternal Educational Attainment | |
<High school | 32 (10.9%) |
High school | 58 (19.8%) |
Some college credits | 41 (14%) |
College degree | 126 (43%) |
≥Graduate degree | 36 (12.3%) |
Maternal educational attainment | |
<High school | 36 (12.3%) |
High school | 72 (24.6%) |
Some college credits | 20 (6.8%) |
College degree | 144 (49.1%) |
≥Graduate degree | 21 (7.2%) |
Annual household income | |
Below sufficiency line | 95 (32.2%) |
From sufficiency line to 100% above | 124 (42.3%) |
>100% above sufficiency line | 74 (25.3%) |
# of Use of Psychotropic Medication * | Current Use | Past Use | ||
---|---|---|---|---|
Medication | n | (%) | n | (%) |
Risperidone | 54 | (53) | 19 | (45) |
Methylphenidate | 31 | (30) | 13 | (32) |
Valproic Acid | 9 | (9) | 8 | (17) |
Carbamazepine | 3 | (3) | 2 | (4) |
Atomoxetine HCI | 2 | (2) | 1 | (2) |
Citalopram | 2 | (2) | 1 | (2) |
Others | 1 | (1) | 0 | (0) |
Total | 102 (39.08%) | 42 (16.09%) |
Items | OR | p-Value | 95% CI for OR | |
---|---|---|---|---|
Lower | Upper | |||
Child age | 1.25 | <0.001 | 1.12 | 1.40 |
Sex, male | 1.19 | 0.706 | 0.49 | 2.87 |
Presence of comorbidity | 7.75 | <0.001 | 3.48 | 17.24 |
Paternal educational attainment | ||||
<High school | REF | |||
High school | 0.31 | 0.093 | 0.08 | 1.21 |
Some college credits | 0.46 | 0.318 | 0.10 | 2.13 |
College degree | 0.51 | 0.323 | 0.14 | 1.93 |
≥Graduate degree | 0.44 | 0.310 | 0.09 | 2.16 |
Maternal educational attainment | ||||
<High school | REF | |||
High school | 1.25 | 0.717 | 0.37 | 4.17 |
Some college credits | 0.24 | 0.203 | 0.03 | 2.17 |
College degree | 1.19 | 0.773 | 0.36 | 3.91 |
≥Graduate degree | 0.73 | 0.738 | 0.12 | 4.59 |
Annual household income | ||||
Below sufficiency line | REF | |||
From sufficiency line to 100% above | 1.70 | 0.234 | 0.71 | 4.05 |
>100% above sufficiency line | 1.27 | 0.672 | 0.42 | 3.78 |
Parental Concerns Questionnaire (PCQ) Items | ||||
My child does not use words or finds it difficult to initiate conversations with others. | 1.79 | 0.021 | 1.09 | 2.95 |
My child always completes routines the same way. | 0.93 | 0.775 | 0.57 | 1.52 |
My child gets anxious in new or crowded places. | 1.70 | 0.049 | 1.00 | 2.87 |
My child is sensitive to light, sound, and touch. | 0.66 | 0.101 | 0.40 | 1.08 |
My child does not sleep easily or their sleep is interrupted. | 1.07 | 0.740 | 0.71 | 1.62 |
My child hits or bites others. | 0.97 | 0.908 | 0.62 | 1.54 |
My child is constantly moving, running, or jumping. | 1.02 | 0.923 | 0.63 | 1.67 |
My child has difficulty completing the tasks assigned to them. | 1.14 | 0.621 | 0.68 | 1.91 |
My child has sudden changed moods/emotions. | 1.07 | 0.802 | 0.63 | 1.81 |
My child only eats certain types of food. | 0.88 | 0.542 | 0.57 | 1.34 |
My child prefers to be alone or have few friends. | 0.80 | 0.416 | 0.48 | 1.36 |
My toddler is shaking or flapping their hands. | 1.49 | 0.057 | 0.99 | 2.23 |
Items | OR | p-Value | 95% CI for OR | |
---|---|---|---|---|
Lower | Upper | |||
Child age | 1.23 | 0.002 | 1.08 | 1.40 |
Sex, male | 2.74 | 0.111 | 0.79 | 9.46 |
Severity level | ||||
Mild | REF | |||
Moderate | 1.28 | 0.804 | 0.18 | 9.00 |
Severe | 0.76 | 0.794 | 0.10 | 5.93 |
Presence of comorbidities | 2.83 | 0.022 | 1.16 | 6.92 |
Paternal educational attainment | ||||
<High school | REF | |||
High school | 0.66 | 0.638 | 0.12 | 3.66 |
Some college credits | 0.52 | 0.497 | 0.08 | 3.45 |
College degree | 0.96 | 0.961 | 0.21 | 4.49 |
≥Graduate degree | 1.34 | 0.751 | 0.22 | 8.39 |
Annual household income | ||||
Below sufficiency line | REF | |||
From sufficiency line to 100% above | 1.29 | 0.612 | 0.48 | 3.51 |
>100% above sufficiency line | 0.68 | 0.523 | 0.21 | 2.24 |
Parental Concerns Questionnaire (PCQ) Items | ||||
My child does not use words or finds it difficult to initiate conversations with others. | 1.16 | 0.633 | 0.64 | 2.09 |
My child always completes routines in the same way. | 0.77 | 0.419 | 0.41 | 1.45 |
My child gets anxious in new or crowded places. | 1.26 | 0.494 | 0.65 | 2.45 |
My child is sensitive to lights, sounds, and touch. | 1.22 | 0.573 | 0.61 | 2.41 |
My child does not sleep easily or their sleep is interrupted. | 1.39 | 0.226 | 0.81 | 2.38 |
My child hits or bites others. | 1.11 | 0.686 | 0.66 | 1.86 |
My child is constantly moving, running, or jumping. | 1.12 | 0.713 | 0.61 | 2.06 |
My child has difficulty completing the tasks assigned to them. | 0.94 | 0.835 | 0.51 | 1.73 |
My child has sudden changed moods/emotions. | 1.32 | 0.407 | 0.69 | 2.52 |
My child only eats certain types of food. | 0.58 | 0.082 | 0.31 | 1.07 |
My child prefers to be alone or have few friends. | 1.47 | 0.288 | 0.72 | 2.97 |
My toddler is shaking or flapping their hands. | 0.79 | 0.386 | 0.46 | 1.35 |
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Alenezi, S.; Alnemary, F.; Alamri, A.; Albakr, D.; Abualkhair, L.; Alnemary, F. Psychotropic Medications Use among Children with Autism in Saudi Arabia. Children 2022, 9, 966. https://doi.org/10.3390/children9070966
Alenezi S, Alnemary F, Alamri A, Albakr D, Abualkhair L, Alnemary F. Psychotropic Medications Use among Children with Autism in Saudi Arabia. Children. 2022; 9(7):966. https://doi.org/10.3390/children9070966
Chicago/Turabian StyleAlenezi, Shuliweeh, Fahad Alnemary, Asma Alamri, Dalal Albakr, Lamees Abualkhair, and Faisal Alnemary. 2022. "Psychotropic Medications Use among Children with Autism in Saudi Arabia" Children 9, no. 7: 966. https://doi.org/10.3390/children9070966