Health Watch is a Public Service of the Office of News and Publications  and is intended to provide general information only and should not replace the advice of a medical professional. You should contact your physician if you have questions about any of these topics.

This week on Health Watch, we’re talking about giving children a good start in life by dealing with potential problems before they have broader effects later in life. We’ve been discussing childhood anxiety disorders and how important it is to treat them so they don’t result in major issues in adulthood.

Fortunately, studies have shown that it is possible to treat these disorders in children. A combination of medication and cognitive behavioral therapy appears to be most effective. The cognitive therapy examines thinking patterns in order to change behavior. Dr. Graham Emslie, a child psychiatrist at UT Southwestern Medical Center, says it’s important that childhood anxiety disorders be fully treated. Partial treatment may only result in a relapse, and treatment is essential to overcoming these problems for a lifetime.

Visit http://www.utsouthwestern.org/mentalhealth to learn more about
UT Southwestern’s clinical services in mental health.

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^{January 2009}

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