Pathological Childhood Masturbation in Children Who Referred to a Child and Adolescent Psychiatric Clinic

Background: Epidemiological information on childhood masturbation and its associated factors have received little attention in Iran. Objectives: The present study aimed to investigate the prevalence of pathological childhood masturbation in children as an outpatient child and adolescent psychiatric clinic in Ahvaz. Methods: This cross-sectional study was conducted from 2015 to 2017on all children (age range of 2 - 12 years) with pathological masturbation who were referred to a child and adolescent psychiatric clinic in Ahvaz. A clinical psychologist and a child and adolescent psychiatrist diagnosed masturbation after taking the history of the child or his/her parent and watching a video of the behavior. The data were collected via clinical interview and demographic form and analyzed via SPSS16. Results: Among 600 children, 65 (10.8%) had pathological masturbation. The most common behavior during masturbation was genital stimulation with hand and rubbing of the genitalia against other objects. The most common emotional states in which they masturbated were boredom (23.07%) and agitation (12.3%). Toilet was the most common location for masturbation (6.15%). The pathological masturbation co-occurred in 76.88% of children with other psychiatric disorders. The most prevalent psychiatric disorders in children with masturbatory behavior were Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) with a comorbid psychiatric disorder. Conclusions: Knowing this problem, its behavioral patterns, situations in which masturbation occurs, and its comorbid disorders facilitate diagnosis and prevent unnecessary tests and treatments.