Citation

Reeb-Sutherland BC, Helfinstein SM, Degnan KA, Pérez-Edgar KE, Henderson HA, Lissek S, Chronis-Tuscano A, Grillon C, Pine DS, Fox NA. J. Am. Acad. Child Adolesc. Psychiatry 2009; 48(6): 610-617.

Affiliation

Department of Human Development, University of Maryland, 3304 Benjamin Building, College Park, MD 20742, USA. breeb@umd.edu

Copyright

(Copyright © 2009, American Academy of Child Adolescent Psychiatry, Publisher Lippincott Williams and Wilkins)

DOI

10.1097/CHI.0b013e31819f70fb

PMID

19454917

PMCID

PMC2786057

Abstract

OBJECTIVE: Behaviorally inhibited children face increased risk for anxiety disorders, although factors that predict which children develop a disorder remain poorly specified. The current study examines whether the startle reflex response may be used to differentiate between behaviorally inhibited adolescents with and without a history of anxiety. METHOD: Participants were assessed for behavioral inhibition during toddlerhood and early childhood. They returned to the laboratory as adolescents and completed a fear-potentiated startle paradigm and a clinical diagnostic interview (Schedule for Affective Disorders and Schizophrenia for School-Age Children-Present and Lifetime Version). Magnitude of the startle reflex was examined at baseline and during cues associated with safety and threat. RESULTS: Only adolescents who showed high levels of behavioral inhibition and had a lifetime occurrence of anxiety disorders showed increased startle reactivity in the presence of safety cues. Neither behavioral inhibition nor diagnosis was related to startle reactivity during threat cues. CONCLUSIONS: These results suggest that neurobiological measures, such as the startle reflex, may be a potential risk marker for the development of anxiety disorders among behaviorally inhibited adolescents. These methods may enhance our ability to identify vulnerable individuals before the development of anxious psychopathology.

Language: en