Introduction:

New models of child and adolescent psychiatric hospitalizations are currently being implemented to meet the growing demand for intensive psychiatric care resources required by this population.

Objective:

To identify the clinical and demographic characteristics of children and adolescents with psychiatric diagnosis hospitalized on the Pediatric Service of a General Pediatric Hospital.

Materials and Methods:

This was a descriptive, retrospective cross-sectional study, based on the clinical histories of 180 hospitalized cases during January-August of 2015. Variables: Age, sex, place of origin, reason for admission, psychiatric diagnosis, type of psychiatric pathology, medication, clinical service from which the psychiatric evaluation was initiated, hospitalization days, follow-up and referral.

Results:

During the study period, 180 hospitalized patients were identified with one or more psychiatric diagnoses, of which 67.2% were female. The median age was 13 years. Of a total of 387 diagnoses found, the six most frequent psychiatric diagnoses were: different types of child abuse (42.89%), depressive disorders (21.71%), suicide attempts (8.27%), adaptive disorders (4.39%) and post traumatic stress disorder (4.13%). 56% had two or more comorbid psychiatric diagnoses. The hospitalization was initiated mainly from the Emergency Department (67.3%). 54.4% (98/180) were hospitalized for 1 to 3 days. In 47.2% of cases, psychopharmacotherapy was indicated.

Conclusion:

There was a higher frequency of psychiatric diagnoses in adolescents and in the female sex. Suspicion of child sexual abuse represented a frequent reason for admission. The different forms of child abuse, depressive disorders and suicide attempts, as they constitute the most frequent psychiatric diagnoses, require specific and effective evaluation and treatment parameters for their adequate multidisciplinary management. The Pediatric Emergency Department plays an important role as a gateway for these patients into the health system and the mental health care services continuum.

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