Mental and Behavioral Disorders: Types, Causes, Treatment

Mental and behavioral disorders are one of the most complex medical problems, affecting people regardless of where they live or their social status. Mental and behavioral disorders can either dramatically affect a person's life or be almost unnoticeable to others.

According to the WHO, one in four to five people in the world has some mental or behavioral disorder. (During the COVID-19 pandemic, the number of people suffering from anxiety and depressive disorders rose by 26-28%, despite the availability of effective prevention and treatment.)

Have you noticed worrying symptoms of a psychoneurological problem in yourself or your child? Is there a family history? Do you want to be examined or to check a diagnosis? Not sure which doctor treats mental and behavioral disorders? You will find answers at the multidisciplinary CSM Clinic in Kyiv. In our full-cycle clinic the disease can be diagnosed promptly, a correction plan drawn up, and help provided to improve quality of life as much as possible. Our specialists are experienced, and examinations and treatment are carried out according to established protocols using expert-level equipment.

Types of Mental and Behavioral Disorders

Mental disorders are a broad range of pathological conditions caused by changes in a person's psyche. They directly or indirectly affect a person's lifestyle, socialization, ability to work, as well as the ability to perform daily tasks and adequately perceive the events happening to them.

Behavioral disorders (externalizing disorders) are pathological conditions in which people have a persistent inability to plan and control their own behavioral responses, and their behavior does not conform to generally accepted social norms (so the problem is often perceived as creativity, nonconformity or character traits). Such people are also unable to socialize (they find it difficult to build relationships even with relatives) and have problems with memory and intellectual abilities.

Types of mental and behavioral disorders according to the International Statistical Classification of Diseases (ICD):

• [F00-F09] Organic, including symptomatic, mental disorders
• [F10-F19] Mental and behavioral disorders due to psychoactive substance use
• [F20-F29] Schizophrenia, schizotypal and delusional disorders
• [F30-F39] Mood (affective) disorders
• [F40-F48) Neurotic, stress-related and somatoform disorders
• [F50-F59] Behavioral syndromes associated with physiological disturbances and physical factors
• [F60-F69] Disorders of adult personality and behavior
• [F70-F79] Intellectual disability
• [F80-F89] Disorders of psychological development
• [F90-F98] Behavioral and emotional disorders with onset usually occurring in childhood and adolescence
• [F99-F99] Unspecified mental disorder

Why Do Mental and Behavioral Disorders Develop?

The causes of mental and behavioral disorders are divided into external and internal factors. But regardless of etiology, the organ affected is the brain, and mental health depends on disturbances in it.

Internal factors that influence the development of disorders:

• traumatic brain injury;
• brain tumors;
• infectious agents that directly affect the brain or cause intoxication of the whole body;
• diabetes mellitus, stroke, cerebral palsy, hormonal imbalance and many other diseases;
• congenital anomalies;
• heredity, etc.

External factors that influence the development of disorders:

• gaps in a child's upbringing;
• systematic conflicts with peers and/or parents (up to hostile attitudes);
• violence (domestic, bullying, etc.) and other psychological trauma;
• exposure to toxic substances, alcohol, drugs and some medications;
• severe and/or prolonged psycho-emotional overstrain;
• systematic stress, etc.

The exact cause of an acute or chronic disorder can be determined only by a specialist after interviewing the patient (sometimes also their close circle) and an expert comprehensive examination of the body.

In children, both types of disorders may be accompanied by: inability or unwillingness to communicate, excessive aggression, cruelty, disobedience, lying, running away from home, learning difficulties, poor memory and speech defects.

Consequences of Mental and Behavioral Disorders

Mental and behavioral disorders in children and adults are dangerous not only for the quality of life of the patients themselves but also of their relatives. In addition, at certain stages and during exacerbations they can lead to:

• suicidal tendencies;
• behavioral disturbances with pathological personality change;
• severe and prolonged depression;
• a desire for complete social isolation;
• unlimited use of psychoactive substances and alcohol;
• inability to perform any everyday activities, etc.

Diagnosis of Mental and Behavioral Disorders

Mental and behavioral disorders require qualified diagnosis. They cannot be differentiated or treated on your own.

The examination may include:

• history taking (including family history - heredity, and somatic history - childhood illnesses, brain injuries, cerebral seizures, etc.);
• collecting information about mental health problems already diagnosed;
• description of the patient's mental status (if needed);
• laboratory tests (genetic and/or immunological analysis);
• MRI (helps rule out organic causes of symptoms, such as tumors or brain injury);
• EEG;
• a neurophysiological test system, etc.

Treatment of Mental and Behavioral Disorders

As noted above, self-treatment of mental and behavioral disorders is a mistake. As a rule, such a decision only worsens the situation. For treatment to bring the expected positive result, we recommend seeking help from specialized medical institutions at the first suspicion.

Our clinic provides correction of behavioral disorders in children, as well as of mental disorders in patients of various ages. The methods we use have been applied with many patients.

Treatment of behavioral and mental disorders at CSM Clinic is based on a comprehensive approach that includes medication therapy, group and individual sessions with a psychologist, physiotherapy and other correction methods (including proprietary methods used at our center).

As for a child's mental health, it is worth paying more attention to their upbringing (but remember that proper upbringing does not mean being overly strict), monitoring their daily routine and sleep, as well as nutrition and physical and mental workload (which should be appropriate for their age), and it is also useful to spend time discussing how the child's day went (whether they attend kindergarten, school or university), etc.

Benefits of Treating Mental and Behavioral Disorders at the Clinic

1. CSM Clinic in Kyiv is a medical center where you can receive a full range of services, from diagnosis to rehabilitation therapy.
2. Expert diagnosis of health problems: qualified specialists, a powerful MAGNETOM Skyra Maximize 3T MRI scanner with a 70 cm bore and other expert-level diagnostic equipment.
3. A personalized approach to every patient.
4. Treatment using methods approved by world neurological and psychiatric practice.
5. Confidentiality of services.
6. Affordable prices for quality medical care.

Need treatment for mental and behavioral disorders in Kyiv? Expert diagnosis and correction of problems are available to you at CSM Clinic. In addition to addressing your health issues in the capital, we invite residents of Kyiv and the region to come for a full examination at the multidisciplinary CSM Clinic in Bila Tserkva: a comfortable hotel on the medical center's premises and prompt diagnostics are at your service. To book an appointment, contact our contact center by phone or through the website. Entrust your mental and physical health to professionals - we will help improve your quality of life.