Charles H. Zeanah
Encyclopedia
Charles H. Zeanah Jr., M.D. is a child and adolescent psychiatrist
who is a member of the Council (Board) of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry
(AACAP).
. He is also an Executive Director of the Institute of Infant and Early Childhood Mental Health.
Zeanah is the editor of the Handbook of Infant Mental Health. His particular field of research is in child psychopathology
focussing on infant-parent relationships, attachment
and its development in high-risk environments. Zeanah has many scientific papers in peer reviewed journals and books on these topics.
In 2005 Zeanah was the joint author, with N. Boris, of AACAP's Practice Parameter for the assessment and treatment of reactive attachment disorder
. He was also a member of the American Professional Society on the Abuse of Children
(APSAC) Taskforce which reported on attachment therapy
, reactive attachment disorder, and attachment problems
in 2006.
, with particular reference to their attachment status and needs. This program is currently in the process of being evaluated. Zeanah directs the Tulane Jefferson Parish Human Services Authority Infant Team, a community-based intervention program for abused and neglected infants and toddlers in the New Orleans area.
and disinhibited attachment disorder
in DSM-IV-TR, the revised fourth edition of the American Psychiatric Association
's Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders
(DSM), and the World Health Organization
's International Statistical Classification of Diseases and Related Health Problems
(ICD-10). The first new category is disorder of attachment, in which a young child has no preferred adult caregiver, parallel to RAD in its inhibited and disinhibited forms, as defined in DSM and ICD. The second is secure base distortion, where the child has a preferred familiar caregiver, but the relationship is such that the child cannot use the adult for safety while gradually exploring the environment. The third is disrupted attachment. Disrupted attachment is not covered under ICD-10 and DSM criteria, and results from an abrupt separation or loss of a familiar caregiver to whom attachment has developed. This form of categorization may demonstrate more clinical accuracy overall than the current DSM and ICD classifications, but further research is required.
Psychiatry
Psychiatry is the medical specialty devoted to the study and treatment of mental disorders. These mental disorders include various affective, behavioural, cognitive and perceptual abnormalities...
who is a member of the Council (Board) of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry
American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry
The American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry is a 501 non-profit professional association in the United States dedicated to facilitating psychiatric care for children and adolescents. Established in 1953, the Academy is headquartered in Washington, D.C...
(AACAP).
Professional
Zeanah is a Professor of Psychiatry and Professor of Clinical Pediatrics, Director of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and Vice-Chair of the Department of Psychiatry and Neurology at the Tulane University School of MedicineTulane University School of Medicine
The Tulane University School of Medicine is located in New Orleans, Louisiana, USA and is a part of Tulane University. The school is located in the Medical District of the New Orleans Central Business District.-History:...
. He is also an Executive Director of the Institute of Infant and Early Childhood Mental Health.
Zeanah is the editor of the Handbook of Infant Mental Health. His particular field of research is in child psychopathology
Psychopathology
Psychopathology is the study of mental illness, mental distress, and abnormal/maladaptive behavior. The term is most commonly used within psychiatry where pathology refers to disease processes...
focussing on infant-parent relationships, attachment
Attachment theory
Attachment theory describes the dynamics of long-term relationships between humans. Its most important tenet is that an infant needs to develop a relationship with at least one primary caregiver for social and emotional development to occur normally. Attachment theory is an interdisciplinary study...
and its development in high-risk environments. Zeanah has many scientific papers in peer reviewed journals and books on these topics.
In 2005 Zeanah was the joint author, with N. Boris, of AACAP's Practice Parameter for the assessment and treatment of reactive attachment disorder
Reactive attachment disorder
Reactive attachment disorder is described in clinical literature as a severe and relatively uncommon disorder that can affect children. RAD is characterized by markedly disturbed and developmentally inappropriate ways of relating socially in most contexts...
. He was also a member of the American Professional Society on the Abuse of Children
American Professional Society on the Abuse of Children
American Professional Society on the Abuse of Children is an organization in the USA started by David Corwin. The APSAC website states its mission is "mission is to enhance the ability of professionals to respond to children and their families affected by abuse and violence." Membership is open to...
(APSAC) Taskforce which reported on attachment therapy
Attachment Therapy
Attachment therapy is the most commonly used term for a controversial category of alternative child mental health interventions intended to treat attachment disorders. The term generally includes accompanying parenting techniques...
, reactive attachment disorder, and attachment problems
Attachment disorder
Attachment disorder is a broad term intended to describe disorders of mood, behavior, and social relationships arising from a failure to form normal attachments to primary care giving figures in early childhood, resulting in problematic social expectations and behaviors...
in 2006.
New Orleans Intervention program
In 1998, Zeanah, together with J.A. Larrieu, devised the New Orleans Intervention, a treatment and prevention program aimed at developmental and health needs of children under the age of five who have been maltreated and placed in foster careFoster care
Foster care is the term used for a system in which a minor who has been made a ward is placed in the private home of a state certified caregiver referred to as a "foster parent"....
, with particular reference to their attachment status and needs. This program is currently in the process of being evaluated. Zeanah directs the Tulane Jefferson Parish Human Services Authority Infant Team, a community-based intervention program for abused and neglected infants and toddlers in the New Orleans area.
Practice parameters for attachment disorders
In a series of papers from 1996 onwards, Zeanah and N. Boris, building on the earlier work of A.F. Lieberman, proposed new practice parameters for the categorization of attachment disorders, currently categorized as reactive attachment disorderReactive attachment disorder
Reactive attachment disorder is described in clinical literature as a severe and relatively uncommon disorder that can affect children. RAD is characterized by markedly disturbed and developmentally inappropriate ways of relating socially in most contexts...
and disinhibited attachment disorder
Disinhibited attachment disorder
Disinhibited attachment disorder of childhood according to the International Classification of Diseases , is defined as:Disinhibited attachment disorder is a subtype of the ICD-10 category F94, "Disorders of social functioning with onset specific to childhood and adolescence"...
in DSM-IV-TR, the revised fourth edition of the American Psychiatric Association
American Psychiatric Association
The American Psychiatric Association is the main professional organization of psychiatrists and trainee psychiatrists in the United States, and the most influential worldwide. Its some 38,000 members are mainly American but some are international...
's Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders
Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders
The Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders is published by the American Psychiatric Association and provides a common language and standard criteria for the classification of mental disorders...
(DSM), and the World Health Organization
World Health Organization
The World Health Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations that acts as a coordinating authority on international public health. Established on 7 April 1948, with headquarters in Geneva, Switzerland, the agency inherited the mandate and resources of its predecessor, the Health...
's International Statistical Classification of Diseases and Related Health Problems
ICD-10
The International Statistical Classification of Diseases and Related Health Problems, 10th Revision is a medical classification list for the coding of diseases, signs and symptoms, abnormal findings, complaints, social circumstances, and external causes of injury or diseases, as maintained by the...
(ICD-10). The first new category is disorder of attachment, in which a young child has no preferred adult caregiver, parallel to RAD in its inhibited and disinhibited forms, as defined in DSM and ICD. The second is secure base distortion, where the child has a preferred familiar caregiver, but the relationship is such that the child cannot use the adult for safety while gradually exploring the environment. The third is disrupted attachment. Disrupted attachment is not covered under ICD-10 and DSM criteria, and results from an abrupt separation or loss of a familiar caregiver to whom attachment has developed. This form of categorization may demonstrate more clinical accuracy overall than the current DSM and ICD classifications, but further research is required.