COVID-19 was declared a pandemic in March 2020, resulting in many countries worldwide calling for lockdowns. This study aimed to review the existing literature on the effects of the lockdown measures established as a response to the COVID-19 pandemic on the mental health of children and adolescents. Embase, Ovid, Global Health, PsycINFO, Web of Science, and pre-print databases were searched in this PRISMA-compliant systematic review (PROSPERO: CRD42021225604). We included individual studies reporting on a wide range of mental health outcomes, including risk and protective factors, conducted in children and adolescents (aged ≤ 19 years), exposed to COVID-19 lockdown. Data extraction and quality appraisal were conducted by independent researchers, and results were synthesised by core themes. 61 articles with 54,999 children and adolescents were included (mean age = 11.3 years, 49.7% female). Anxiety symptoms and depression symptoms were common in the included studies and ranged 1.8–49.5% and 2.2–63.8%, respectively. Irritability (range = 16.7–73.2%) and anger (range = 30.0–51.3%), were also frequently reported by children and adolescents. Special needs and the presence of mental disorders before the lockdown, alongside excessive media exposure, were significant risk factors for anxiety. Parent–child communication was protective for anxiety and depression. The COVID-19 lockdown has resulted in psychological distress and highlighted vulnerable groups such as those with previous or current mental health difficulties. Supporting the mental health needs of children and adolescents at risk is key. Clinical guidelines to alleviate the negative effects of COVID-19 lockdown and public health strategies to support this population need to be developed.

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The impact of COVID-19 lockdown on child and adolescent mental health: systematic review.

Eating behavior and food purchases during the COVID-19 lockdown: A cross-sectional study among adults in the Netherlands.

PURPOSE: This study was conducted to evaluate nursing students' views on the COVID-19 pandemic and their perceived stress levels. DESIGN AND METHODS: A cross-sectional design was used to carry out this study. The research was conducted between April and May 2020 with 662 nursing students. Data were collected by an information form developed for the study and the Perceived Stress Scale (PSS). FINDINGS: The average score on the PSS was 31.69 ± 6.91, indicating that the students had a moderate level of stress. Significant differences in PSS score were found in terms of age and sex (P < .001 and P < .001, respectively). PRACTICE IMPLICATIONS: Results of this study indicated that age, sex, and some variables related to the pandemic process affect perceived stress levels of nursing students.

https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/pdf/10.1111/ppc.12597

Nursing students' views on the COVID-19 pandemic and their percieved stress levels.

Pandemic, being unprecedented, leads to several mental health problems, especially among the front-line healthcare workers (HCW). Front-line HCWs often suffer from anxiety, depression, burnout, insomnia and stress-related disorders. This is mediated to a large extent by the biopsychological vulnerabilities of the individuals; socioenvironmental factors such as the risk of exposure to infection, effective risk communication to HCWs, availability of personal protective equipment, job-related stress, perceived stigma and psychological impact of the isolation/quarantine and interpersonal distancing also play the major roles. Despite the huge magnitude of mental health problems among the front-line HCWs, their psychological health is often overlooked. Some of the potential measures to reduce the mental health problems of the front-line HCWs are effective communication, tangible support from the administration/seniors, mental health problem screening—and interventional—facilities, making quarantine/isolation less restrictive and ensuring interpersonal communication through the various digital platforms, proactively curtailing the misinformation/rumour spread by the media and strict legal measures against violence/ill treatment with the HCWs, and so on. India, along with other countries who lately got affected by the COVID-19, must learn from the experiences of the other countries and also from the previous pandemics as to how to address the mental health needs of their front-line HCWs and ensure HCWs’ mental well-being, thereby improving their productivity. Current review attempts to highlight the mental health aspects of the pandemic on the front-line HCWs, discusses some of the contentious issues and provides future directions particularly concerning COVID-19 in the Indian context and other low-resource countries.

https://gpsych.bmj.com/content/gpsych/33/5/e100284.full.pdf

Pandemic and mental health of the front-line healthcare workers: A review and implications in the Indian context amidst COVID-19

COVID-19, a new emerging infectious disease (EID), has spread throughout the world, including Europe. Spain, in particular, has witnessed a significant outbreak of the pandemic. All classes have been canceled, and the government has declared a state of emergency, ordering the lockdown and confinement of the entire population. All children in the country have been confined to their homes since March 13 and are not allowed to leave at any time. This population is thus facing the harshest restrictions. Given the vulnerable situation of children, the aim of this research is to understand how they represent and emotionally cope with the COVID-19 crisis. A free association exercise elicited by the word "coronavirus" was completed by 228 children (age range: 3-12 years) from the North of Spain. To analyze the content, we employed the Reinert method with Iramuteq software for lexical analysis. The results revealed that children represent the COVID-19 as an enemy that is being fought by the doctors. Children are afraid and worried about catching the virus, but mainly because they think they can infect their grandparents, and this makes them feel guilty. Moreover, the lockdown situation has produced conflicting emotions in the children. On the one hand, they are scared, nervous, lonely, sad, bored, and angry, but they also feel safe, calm, and happy with their families. These results indicate the need for governments to also consider children in their management of the current situation by placing greater emphasis on social and inclusive policies to help alleviate the possible effects that they may suffer as a consequence of the pandemic and the lockdown. In short, there is a need to address the psychological, educational, social, health, and well-being needs of children.

/pdf/exploring-children-s-social-and-emotional-representations-of-dp6ig9bzng.pdf

Exploring Children's Social and Emotional Representations of the COVID-19 Pandemic

The infection caused by the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) started from China and reached the whole world and was declared as pandemic by WHO. The COVID 19 poses challenges in all aspects of life including mental health for the entire human race. In the disturbed and crisis situation, the mental health care of people at different levels carries great importance: promotion, prevention and clinical care. First of all, we should not refer “COVID-19 case,” “victim,” “COVID-19 family,” but “person who have COVID-19,” “people who are being treated for COVID-19”, etc. Social distancing is a public health strategy to limit the spread of COVID-19. There may be a feeling of ostracism, abandonment and being neglected in people, particularly the elderly when they are isolated. Older adults, especially in isolation and those with cognitive decline or dementia, may become more anxious, angry, stressed, agitated, and withdrawn during the outbreak or while in quarantine. These people need emotional support through informal networks (families) and health professionals. Maintaining social networks in situations of isolations is essential for mental health. The treating physician should ensure basic emotional and practical support to affected people. Children need special attention to express their fear and sadness.
Media has highlighted COVID-19 as a unique threat, rather than one of many, which has added to panic, stress, and the potential for hysteria. Information should be sought from WHO website and government health authorities’ platforms, in order to distinguish facts from rumours. Individuals with mental illness may be particularly vulnerable to the effects of widespread panic and threat. Instead of harassment, people with COVID 19 should be offer compassion, support via phone and texts, and assistance as appropriate, but never hostility or judgment.
How to cite this article:Jiloha RC. COVID-19 and Mental Health. Epidem Int 2020; 5(1): 7-9.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.24321/2455.7048.202002

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RC Jiloha

Papers

COVID-19 and Mental Health