Introduction to the supplement

Excerpt

The concepts of child and adolescent psychiatric disorders show both continuity and change. Whereas the main broad psychopathological phenomena do not change fundamentally, there is an ongoing process of refining diagnostic criteria of various disorders, delineating new subtypes, and, from time to time, also the definition of a new diagnostic entity. These processes are reflected in the major classification systems forming an important framework of clinical work and service delivery which are existing now already for several decades. Another important cornerstone structuring clinical practice is the increasing number of disorder-specific guidelines for both assessment and treatment of these disorders. …