Prevalence, Comorbidity and Predictor of Separation Anxiety Disorder in Children and Adolescents

Separation Anxiety Disorder(SAD) is one of the earliest anxiety disorders. The effect of this disorder on the performance of children and adolescents reveals the need for awareness of the prevalence and comorbidity of this disorder in each region. This study is a cross-sectional analytical study implemented in all provinces of Iran. The instrument used in this study is the Persian version of the Kiddie Schedule for Affective Disorders and Schizophrenia-Present and Lifetime Version(K-SADA-PL) questionnaire. The total number of participants was 29,699. The overall prevalence of SAD was 5.3%. The comorbidity rate of 65.3% was found between SAD and other psychiatric disorders. Specific phobia and oppositional defiant disorder had the highest comorbidity with this disorder in the studied population. The more prevalence of separation anxiety disorder in the age range of 6-9 years old highlights the need for early detection of this disorder and targeting screening programs in childhood and adolescence.