This study aimed to explore the reliability of self-reported trauma histories in a population with a diagnosis of Bipolar Disorder using the Childhood Trauma Questionnaire. Previous studies in other populations suggest high reliability of trauma histories over time and it was postulated that a similar high reliability would be demonstrated in this population. Thirty-nine patients with a confirmed diagnosis (DSM-IV criteria) were followed-up and re-administered the Childhood Trauma Questionnaire after 18 months. Cohen's kappa scores and intraclass correlations suggest reasonable test-retest reliability over the 18-month time period of the study for all types of childhood abuse, namely emotional, physical, sexual, and physical abuse and emotional neglect. Intraclass correlations ranged from r = .50 to (sexual abuse) to r = .96 (physical abuse). Cohen's kappas ranged from .44 (sexual abuse) to .76 (physical abuse). Retrospective reports of childhood trauma can be seen as reliable and are in keeping with results found with other mental health populations.

Objective: to report new prescriptions of psychotropic medications among adolescents presenting with new onset psychotic symptoms during a five-year period. Results: A total of 100 patients (88.5%) were prescribed some form of psychotropic medication.Over three-quarters of patients received an antipsychotic as their first medication. Risperidone (45.8%), olanzapine (24.0%) and chlorpromazine (12.5%) were the most commonly prescribed first-line antipsychotic medications. Of a total of 160 antipsychotic prescriptions, 81 (50.6%) were off-label. Prescriptions were most likely to have been deemed off-label due to medications not being licensed in under-18s (71.6% of off-label prescriptions) but other reasons were medications being used outside licensed age ranges (23.5%) and outside licensed indications (4.9%).Conclusions: This is the first study examining psychotropic prescribing patterns in a complete sample of all children and adolescents presenting with early onset psychotic episodes in a single geographical area. The observation of risperidone as the most commonly-prescribed antipsychotic was in keeping with previous studies in child and adolescent populations. Rates of off-label prescribing were lower than previously observed although our study was the first to investigate offlabel prescribing solely in children and adolescents presenting with psychotic symptoms.2