ArticleChild and adolescent psychiatry and mental health2023
Primary care visits due to mental health problems and use of psychotropic medication during the COVID-19 pandemic in Finnish adolescents and young adults.
Article in Child and adolescent psychiatry and mental health, 2023. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 17 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.
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17 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it.
- Change of antidepressant utilization in children, adolescents and young adults in Europe before and during the COVID-19 pandemic: a systematic review.European child & adolescent psychiatry · 2026Pooled it
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- Trends and incidence rates of neurodevelopmental disorders in Danish children and adolescents 2000-2024 : Short title: neurodevelopmental disorders in children and adolescents.European child & adolescent psychiatry · 2026Article
- The hidden pandemic: changes in outpatient mental health care among French children and adolescents.European child & adolescent psychiatry · 2026Article
- Changes in youth public psychiatric service utilization during the COVID-19 pandemic in Italy: an observational study.Frontiers in pharmacology · 2026Article
- Mental health problems in children and young people in Dutch general practice: trends in incidence and consultation rates from 2016 to 2022.Social psychiatry and psychiatric epidemiology · 2026Article
- Article
- Child and adolescent mental health during the Covid-19 pandemic: an overview of key findings from a thematic series.Child and adolescent psychiatry and mental health · 2025Review
- Past trends and future projections of psychological distress among general population in Finland.BMJ public health · 2025Article
- Prescription drug use in Danish children and adolescents 2005-2023.European journal of epidemiology · 2025Article
- A "silent storm": uncovering the escalating crisis in mental healthcare for children and adolescents in Slovenia during and after the COVID-19 pandemic.Child and adolescent psychiatry and mental health · 2024Article
- Pediatric Hospitalizations and Emergency Department Visits Related to Mental Health Conditions and Self-Harm.JAMA network open · 2024Article
- Impact of the COVID-19 health crisis on psychotropic drug use in children and adolescents in France.Child and adolescent psychiatry and mental health · 2024Article
- Healthcare use of young finnish adults with mental disorders - profiles and profile membership determinants.BMC primary care · 2024Article
- Impact of COVID-19 pandemic on prescription of psychotropic medications in the Italian paediatric population during 2020.Italian journal of pediatrics · 2024Article
- Utilization of antidepressants, anxiolytics, and hypnotics during the COVID-19 pandemic.Translational psychiatry · 2024Review
- Psychotropic Medication Prescribing for Children and Adolescents After the Onset of the COVID-19 Pandemic.JAMA network open · 2024Article
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4 authors.
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Abstract
backgroundSocial restrictions due to COVID-19 have impacted the everyday life of adolescents and young adults, with increased levels of stress and anxiety being reported. Therefore, we report primary care visits due to mental health problems and the use of psychotropic medication in Finland.
methodsWe conducted a nationwide register-based study and included primary care visits with mental health problems (F*-class ICD-10 diagnosis) for patients aged 15-24 years. We calculated incidence for visits and used incidence rate ratios (IRR) for comparisons. Psychotropic medication purchases for patients aged 13-24 years were included. Annual psychotropic medication user prevalence per 1000 was calculated and prevalence rate ratios (PRR) with 95% confidence intervals (CI) were used for comparisons. The years 2020 and 2021 were compared to the pre-pandemic reference year 2019.
resultsA total of 396534 visits to primary care due to mental health problems were included. Annual visit incidences per 1000 were 151.7 in 2019, 193.6 in 2020, and 306.7 in 2021, indicating a 28% (IRR 1.28, CI 1.27-1.29) increase from 2019 to 2020 and a 102% (IRR 2.02, CI:2.01-2.04) increase from 2019 to 2021. Highest reported increases in 2020 were sleeping disorders (IRR 1.79, CI 1.72-1.87) and anxiety disorders (IRR 1.39, CI 1.37-1.42). Prevalence of antidepressant use increased by 25% (PRR 1.25, CI 1.23-1.26) in 2021. An increase was also seen in the use of antipsychotics (+ 19%, PRR 1.19. CI 1.16-1.21).
conclusionsThe COVID-19 pandemic increased the need for mental health services and medication among Finnish adolescents and young adults. Our health care system needs the capacity to manage the increased number of visits, and we must be better prepared for future crises.
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