ArticleBMJ open2022
Have the COVID-19 pandemic and lockdown affected children's mental health in the long term? A repeated cross-sectional study.
Article in BMJ open, 2022. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 9 papers.
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Who cites it
9 citing papers in PubMed.
- Adolescents' health and well-being into the COVID-19 pandemic: A two-wave prospective investigation- The HUNT study.Social psychiatry and psychiatric epidemiology · 2026Article
- Exploring the Use of Sea Swimming as an Intervention With Young People With Mental Health Challenges: A Qualitative Descriptive Study.International journal of mental health nursing · 2025Article
- Assessment of Brazilian children's anxiety during the second year of the COVID-19 pandemic through cross-sectional interviews at schools.Frontiers in public health · 2025Article
- The Associations between Lifestyle Habits and Anxiety: A Prospective Study on Adolescents One Year after the Outbreak of the COVID-19 Pandemic.Children (Basel, Switzerland) · 2024Article
- Factors associated with mental health of young children during the COVID-19 pandemic in the Netherlands.Child and adolescent psychiatry and mental health · 2023Article
- Outbreak of novel coronavirus infection (COVID-19) in a child and adolescent psychiatric ward: Characteristics and responses.Fujita medical journal · 2023Article
- Changes in social behavioral developmental risks in preschool children after the first COVID-19 wave: a prospective longitudinal cohort study.Scientific reports · 2023Article
- COVID-19 Pandemic: 1-Year Follow-Up in Children and Adolescents with Neuropsychiatric Disorders.International journal of environmental research and public health · 2023Article
- Changes in mental health of Korean adolescents before and during the COVID-19 pandemic: a special report using the Korea Youth Risk Behavior Survey.Epidemiology and health · 2023Article
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Authors and funding
15 authors.
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Abstract
objectiveThe study aimed to evaluate the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on levels of anxiety and depressive symptoms in children and adolescents.
designCross-sectional surveys were carried out on the mental health of children; one survey was conducted before the COVID-19 pandemic and one into the pandemic, 15 months after the school closures and implementation of lockdown and social distancing. Demographic data and COVID-19 pandemic-related data were collected from specific parent-report and self-report questionnaires.
participantsParticipants included children and adolescents between ages 6 and 16 years, attending a tertiary care hospital without any diagnosed major psychiatric or chronic disorder. ANALYSIS: Data were collected at two points (before the COVID-19 pandemic and during it) and compared. Levels of anxiety and depressive symptoms were compared and tested for statistically significant differences between these two points using appropriate statistical tests. Regression models were constructed to predict the factors affecting increased anxiety levels and depressive symptoms in the COVID-19 period.
results832 and 1255 children/adolescents were included in the study during the pre-COVID-19 and COVID-19 times, respectively. The median age of the participants was 10 years (IQR=4 years). The median (IQR) Spence Children's Anxiety Scale score was 24 (12) at the pre-COVID-19 point and 31 (13) during the COVID-19 pandemic (p<0.001, r=-0.27). 11% and 16% of children reported being depressed at these two-time points, respectively (p=0.004, φ
conclusionA large proportion of children had elevated anxiety and depressive symptoms during the pandemic relative to before the pandemic, suggesting a need for measures to engage children in healthy habits to protect children's mental health and continuous monitoring of children during such scenarios.
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