The Maternal and Child Health Bureau commissioned the American College of Medical Genetics to outline a process of standardization of outcomes and guidelines for state newborn screening programs and to define responsibilities for collecting and evaluating outcome data, including a recommended uniform panel of conditions to include in state newborn screening programs. The expert panel identified 29 conditions for which screening should be mandated. An additional 25 conditions were identified because they are part of the differential diagnosis of a condition in the core panel, they are clinically significant and revealed with screening technology but lack an efficacious treatment, or they represent incidental findings for which there is potential clinical significance. The process of identification is described, and recommendations are provided.

OBJECTIVES. To develop clinical practice guidelines to assist primary care clinicians in the management of adolescent depression. This second part of the guidelines addresses treatment and ongoing management of adolescent depression in the primary care setting.METHODS. Using a combination of evidence-and consensus-based methodologies, guidelines were developed in 5 phases as informed by (1) current scientific evidence (published and unpublished), (2) a series of focus groups, (3) a formal survey, (4) an expert consensus workshop, and (5) revision and iteration among members of the steering committee.RESULTS. These guidelines are targeted for youth aged 10 to 21 years and offer recommendations for the management of adolescent depression in primary care, including (1) active monitoring of mildly depressed youth, (2) details for the specific application of evidence-based medication and psychotherapeutic approaches in cases of moderate-to-severe depression, (3) careful monitoring of adverse effects, (4) consultation and coordination of care with mental health specialists, (5) ongoing tracking of outcomes, and (6) specific steps to be taken in instances of partial or no improvement after an initial treatment has begun. The strength of each recommendation and its evidence base are summarized.CONCLUSIONS. These guidelines cannot replace clinical judgment, and they should not be the sole source of guidance for adolescent depression management. Nonetheless, the guidelines may assist primary care clinicians in the management of depressed adolescents in an era of great clinical need and a shortage of mental health specialists. Additional research concerning the management of youth with depression in primary care is needed, including the usability, feasibility, and sustainability of guidelines and determination of the extent to which the guidelines actually improve outcomes of youth with depression. that up to 9% of teenagers meet criteria for depression at any one time, with as many as 1 in 5 teens having a history of depression at some point during adolescence. [1][2][3][4][5] In primary care (PC) settings, point prevalence rates are likely higher, with rates up to 28%. 6-10 Taken together, epidemiologic and PCspecific studies have suggested that despite relatively high rates, major depressive disorder (MDD) in youth is underidentified and undertreated in PC settings. 11 Because of barriers to adolescents receiving specialty mental health services, only a small percentage of depressed adolescents are treated by mental health professionals. 12 As a result, PC settings have become the de facto mental health clinics for this population, although most PC clinicians feel inadequately trained, supported, or reimbursed for the management of this disorder. [13][14][15][16][17][18] Although MDD management guidelines have been developed for specialty care settings (eg, see the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry [AACAP] practice parameters 19 ) or for related problems such as suicidal ideation or attempts, 2...

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This part of the guidelines is intended to assist PC clinicians in the identification and initial management of adolescents with depression in an era of great clinical need and shortage of mental health specialists, but they cannot replace clinical judgment; these guidelines are not meant to be the sole source of guidance for depression management in adolescents. Additional research that addresses the identification and initial management of youth with depression in PC is needed, including empirical testing of these guidelines.

OBJECTIVES. To develop clinical practice guidelines to assist primary care clinicians in the management of adolescent depression. This first part of the guidelines addresses identification, assessment, and initial management of adolescent depression in primary care settings.METHODS. By using a combination of evidence-and consensus-based methodologies, guidelines were developed by an expert steering committee in 5 phases, as informed by (1) current scientific evidence (published and unpublished), (2) a series of focus groups, (3) a formal survey, (4) an expert consensus workshop, and (5) draft revision and iteration among members of the steering committee.RESULTS. Guidelines were developed for youth aged 10 to 21 years and correspond to initial phases of adolescent depression management in primary care, including identification of at-risk youth, assessment and diagnosis, and initial management. The strength of each recommendation and its evidence base are summarized. The identification, assessment, and initial management section of the guidelines includes recommendations for (1) identification of depression in youth at high risk, (2) systematic assessment procedures using reliable depression scales, patient and caregiver interviews, and Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fourth Edition criteria, (3) patient and family psychoeducation, (4) establishing relevant links in the community, and (5) the establishment of a safety plan.CONCLUSIONS. This part of the guidelines is intended to assist primary care clinicians in the identification and initial management of depressed adolescents in an era of great clinical need and a shortage of mental health specialists but cannot replace clinical judgment; these guidelines are not meant to be the sole source of guidance for adolescent depression management. Additional research that addresses the identification and initial management of depressed youth in primary care is needed, including empirical testing of these guidelines. 4,5 Even when diagnosed by PC physicians, only half of these patients are treated appropriately. 3 Furthermore, rates of completion of specialty mental health referral for youth with a recognized emotional disorder from general medical settings are quite low (J. V. Campo, MD, written communication, 2006).In view of the shortage of mental health clinicians and barriers to children having access to mental health professionals, the well-documented need for PC clinicians to learn how to manage this condition, the increasing evidence base available to guide clinical practice, increased selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor-prescribing rates in pediatric PC, 6,7 and new evidence that a multifaceted approach with mental health consultation may improve the management of depression in PC settings, [8][9][10][11] guidelines may be a necessary first step in the identification and management of depression in adolescents in PC. Unfortunately, no depression-management guidelines have been developed for use in the PC setting in the United S...