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Mental disorders and physical illness in childhood and early adulthood: cause, prevention and treatments

  • Research program: Prevention and early intervention
  • Project status: Completed
  • Start date: November 2010
  • Expected end date: July 2013
  • Completion date: August 2014
  • Funded by: Curtin - Fellowship
  • Lead organisation:
Project Description

Mental disorders are usually diagnosed and classified based on clusters of symptoms. The existence of physical causes for many mental disorders is unclear, while the knowledge of associations among different types of mental disorders is limited. This project comprises a longitudinal cohort study. Specifically, the study will follow a birth-cohort of males who were born between 1980 and 1984 in WA for a period of 25-29 years, using linked health data, available through the Western Australian Data Linkage System (WADLS). This study will identify potential physical causes for mental disorders and the links between different types of mental disorders and physical illness. Findings of this study will: 1) further the development of psychiatry theory; 2) facilitate the development of effective prevention and treatment programmes for mental disorders and their related physical illnesses in clinical settings; and 3) support better public health strategies for improving the mental health of Australians.

PhD Student
PhD Supervisors
NDRI Project Staff
Name & Contact Details Role Research Program Location
Placeholder image

Professor Tanya Chikritzhs
Tel: 61 (0)8 9266 1609
t.n.chikritzhs@curtin.edu.au
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Co-investigator

Alcohol policy and strategies

Perth
NDRI Adjunct Project Staff
External Project Staff
  • Principal Investigator: Wenbin Liang, Curtin University
Project Contact

Dr Wenbin Liang
Research Fellow
Tel: 61 (0)8 9266 1617
w.liang@curtin.edu.au
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Sustainable Development Goals and Targets

This project aligns with the following Sustainable Development Goals and Targets:

Related Publications

Liang, W., Chikritzhs, T., N. and Lee, A., H. (2015). Lifestyle of young Australian adults with asthma. Asia Pacific Journal of Public Health, 27, (2), pp. NP248-NP254. doi:10.1177/1010539512439229 [RJ824] View web page

Liang, W. and Chikritzhs, T., N. (2013). Asthma history predicts the risk of affective disorders and anxiety disorders. Health, 5, (2), pp. 313-319. doi:10.4236/health.2013.52A042 [RJ886] View web page

Liang, W. and Chikritzhs, T., N. (2013). Motives for romantic relationships and the risk of heavy alcohol use, regular smoking and cannabis use during adolescence and early adulthood: a longitudinal study. Open Journal of Internal Medicine, 3, (2), pp. 23-29. doi:10.4236/ojim.2013.32006 [RJ911] View web page

Liang, W. and Chikritzhs, T., N. (2013). Sleep duration and its links to psychological distress, health status, physical activity and body mass index among a large representative general population sample. International Journal of Clinical Medicine, 4, (1), pp. 45-51. doi:10.4236/ijcm.2013.41010 [RJ885] View web page

Liang, W. and Chikritzhs, T., N. (2013). The association between alcohol exposure and self-reported health status: The effect of separating former and current drinkers. PloS One, 8, (2). doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0055881 [RJ884] View web page

Liang, W. and Chikritzhs, T., N. (2012). Asthma and injury risk: a large scale population-based study. International Journal of Clinical Medicine, 3, pp. 394-399. doi:10.4236/ijcm.2012.35074 [RJ864] View web page

Liang, W. and Chikritzhs, T., N. (2012). Childhood hospitalisations for physical disease and risk of mental disorders during adolescence and early adulthood. Adolescent Psychiatry, 2, (3), pp. 263-270. doi:10.2174/2210676611202030263 [RJ852] View web page

Liang, W. and Chikritzhs, T., N. (2012). Childhood mental disorders and risk of schizophrenia. Current Research in Medicine, 3, (1), pp. 43-46. doi:10.3844/amjsp.2012.43.46 [RJ848] View web page

Liang, W. and Chikritzhs, T., N. (2012). Early childhood infections and risk of schizophrenia. Psychiatry Research. doi:10.1016/j.psychres.202.06.007 [RJ851] View web page

Liang, W. and Chikritzhs, T., N. (2012). Family history of cancer and smoking cessation, is there a role for physicians? International Journal of Clinical Medicine, 3, (1), pp. 9-13. doi:10.4236/ijcm.2012.31002 [RJ826] View web page

Liang, W. and Chikritzhs, T., N. (2012). Pattern of mental health service use and risk of injury: a longitudinal study. Open Journal of Preventive Medicine, 2, (1), pp. 98-104. doi:10.4236/ojpm.2012.21014 [RJ823] View web page

Liang, W. and Chikritzhs, T., N. (2012). The association between age at first use of alcohol and alcohol consumption levels among adult general drinking population. Journal of Public Health. doi:10.1007/s10389-012-0502-2 [RJ833] View web page

Liang, W., Chikritzhs, T., N. and Lee, A., H. (2012). Modest time dependent misclassification in recalling age at first use of alcohol and tobacco. Contemporary Drug Problems, 39, (1). doi:10.1177/009145091203900107 [RJ825] View web page

Liang, W. and Chikritzhs, T., N. (2011). Affective disorders, anxiety disorders and the risk of alcohol dependence and misuse. British Journal of Psychiatry, 199, (3), pp. 219-24. doi:10.1192/bjp.bp.110.086116 [RJ789] View web page

Liang, W. and Chikritzhs, T., N. (2011). Does light alcohol consumption during pregnancy improve offspring’s cognitive development? Medical Hypotheses. doi:10.1016/j.mehy.2011.09.043 [RJ800] View web page

Liang, W. and Chikritzhs, T., N. (2011). Obstetric conditions and risk of first ever mental health contact during infancy, childhood and adolescence. Midwifery. doi:10.1016/j.midw.2011.06.003 [RJ798] View web page

Liang, W. and Lee, A., H. (2011). Does childhood asthma increase the risk of mood disorders in later life? American Medical Journal, 2, (2), pp. 93-97. [RJ828] Download PDF

Liang, W., Chikritzhs, T., N. and Lee, A., H. (2011). Asthma and risk of injury for Australian males aged 6 to 30 years: A population-based birth cohort study. Journal of Asthma, 48, (7), pp. 736-740. doi:10.3109/02770903.2011.599910 [RJ799] View web page

Liang, W., Chikritzhs, T., N. and Lee, A., H. (2011). Is asthma associated with increased risk of injury? Journal of Asthma, 48, (3), pp. 311-315. doi:10.3109/02770903.2011.554945 [RJ776] View web page

Liang, W., Chikritzhs, T., N. and Lenton, S. (2011). Affective disorders and anxiety disorders predict the risk of drug harmful use and dependence. Addiction, 106, (6), pp. 1126–1134. doi:10.1111/j.1360-0443.2011.03362.x [RJ773] View web page