[Reform of the Belgian mental health care system for children and adolescents]. / Een kentering in de ggz voor kinderen en jongeren in België.

BACKGROUND: The Belgian child and adolescent mental health care system is in the process of being substantially reformed and re-shaped. AIM: To outline recent reforms in Belgian child and adolescent mental health care. METHOD: To provide an overview of the recent literature on service delivery and on the organisation of the Belgian mental health care system for children and adolescents. RESULTS: On the basis of various studies a National Plan for Child and Adolescent Mental Health was drawn up and recently approved. CONCLUSION: According to this National Plan additional measures will be taken to help children and young people with mental health problems. Networking will play an increasingly important role in the new organisational configuration of the new mental health policy.

Higher alpha 1-antitrypsin, haptoglobin, ceruloplasmin and lower retinol binding protein plasma levels during depression: further evidence for the existence of an inflammatory response during that illness.

Recently, a few reports have shown that severe depression may be associated with higher levels of positive acute phase proteins (APPs), such as haptoglobin (Hp), alpha 1-acid glycoprotein (alpha 1S) and lower levels of negative APPs (visceral proteins), such as albumin (Alb) and transferrin (Tf). In order to reassess whether depression is related to alterations in the expression of plasma APP concentrations, we measured in 84 normal controls and depressed inpatients positive APPs such as Hp, alpha 1-antitrypsin (alpha 1AT), hemopexin (Hpx), ceruloplasmin (Cp), complement component C3C and one visceral protein, i.e., retinol binding protein (RBP). We found increased plasma concentrations of Hp, alpha 1AT, and Cp in major depressed subjects as compared with healthy controls, with minor depressives exhibiting an intermediate position. RBP was significantly lower in minor and major depressives than in normal controls. The disorders in these proteins were rather sensitive (62%) for major depression, with a specificity equalling 96%. Our findings are compatible with the hypothesis that major depression may be accompanied by inflammatory changes with higher levels of positive APPs (i.e., alpha 1AT, Hp, Cp, alpha 1S) and lower levels of visceral proteins (i.e., RBP, Tf, Alb).