Hospitalizations for Pediatric Catatonia in Neurodivergent and Neurotypical Patients.

INTRODUCTION:Catatonia is a neuropsychiatric disorder that occurs in pediatric patients with a range of associated medical, psychiatric, and neurodevelopmental disorders (NDDs). This study describes hospital care of pediatric catatonia patients and compares treatments for neurotypical patients and those with NDDs. METHODS:Retrospective cohort study from 1/1/2018 to 6/1/2023 of two academic medical centers of patients aged 18 and younger with catatonia. Patients were retrospectively assessed using the clinical global impressions-improvement (CGI-I) by two independent reviewers. RESULTS:One hundred sixty-five patients were hospitalized for catatonia, of whom 50.3 % had an NDD. Median age was 15. One hundred sixty-four patients were treated with a benzodiazepine, with a median maximum 24-hour dose of 6 mg lorazepam-equivalents, which did not differ for patients with and without NDDs. Electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) was utilized in 14.5 % of patients. Median length of medical hospitalization was 5 days and hospitalizations were longer in neurotypical patients than in patients with NDDs. In an ordinal regression model, the probability of observing at least "much improvement" (CGI < 3) was 88.3 % (95 % CI: 82.4 % to 92.3 %), with patients with a non-medical primary diagnosis and an NDD having a lower odds of response than non-medical primary diagnosis without an NDD. CONCLUSIONS:The probability of patients achieving a CGI-I score indicating at least "much improvement" was 88.3 %. Administered benzodiazepine dose and ECT treatment were similar for all patients, but neurotypical patients had longer hospitalizations than those with NDDs and had a higher odds of a more favorable clinical response for patients with non-medical primary diagnoses. Research under controlled conditions is needed to optimize and endure equitable catatonia treatment in youth.