The aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic on pediatric mental health: A pediatric emergency department's perspective.

BACKGROUND: Pediatric mental health visits in the United States has become a public health crisis. Pediatric emergency departments (PED) encounter these patients during mental health emergencies. The COVID-19 pandemic disrupted the social environment of pediatric patients which potentially lead to new and worsening mental health issues. This study examined the proportion of mental health visits to PED around the first wave of the COVID-19 pandemic. METHODS: This retrospective cohort study assessed the proportion of mental health visits at a urban, PED between September 2019 to February 2022. Inclusion criteria were subjects aged 6 to 18 years with a holding order assigned, and one of identified mental health International Classification of Disease, Tenth Division (ICD-10) codes: F01-F99, T14.19, R45, R46.89. Proportion of mental health visits were compared in 6-month periods with the first 6-months representing the pre-COVID-19 period. Secondary analysis compared demographic information and ICD-10 codes. RESULTS: A total of 1036 charts were studied: 126 charts from 2019 to 2020, 512 from 2020 to 2021, and 398 from 2021 to 2022. The proportion of mental health visits from September 2019 to February 2020 was 1.4%, and for the following 6-month periods, the proportion of mental health visits was 1.2%, 7.5%, 4.9%, and 5.7%. There was a statistically significant difference (p < 0.001) demonstrating a higher proportion of mental health visits after the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. Secondary analysis demonstrated statistically significant difference in both median age (p < 0.001) and median length of hospitalization (p < 0.001). CONCLUSION: This study demonstrated a significant increase in pediatric mental health visits following the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. We believe further investigation into the needs and management during acute surges will improve the care we provide to this vulnerable population.

Retrospective analysis of 18F-FDG PET/CT for staging asymptomatic breast cancer patients younger than 40 years.

UNLABELLED: National Comprehensive Cancer Network guidelines consider (18)F-FDG PET/CT for only clinical stage III breast cancer patients. However, there is debate whether TNM staging should be the only factor in considering if PET/CT is warranted. Patient age may be an additional consideration, because young breast cancer patients often have more aggressive tumors with potential for earlier metastases. This study assessed PET/CT for staging of asymptomatic breast cancer patients younger than 40 y. METHODS: In this Institutional Review Board-approved retrospective study, our hospital information system was screened for breast cancer patients younger than 40 y who underwent staging PET/CT before any treatment. Patients with symptoms or conventional imaging findings suggestive of distant metastases or with prior malignancy were excluded. Initial stage was based on physical examination, mammography, ultrasound, and breast MR imaging. PET/CT was then evaluated to identify unsuspected extraaxillary regional nodal and distant metastases. RESULTS: One hundred thirty-four patients with initial breast cancer stage I to IIIC met inclusion criteria. PET/CT findings led to upstaging to stage III or IV in 28 patients (21%). Unsuspected extraaxillary regional nodes were found in 15 of 134 patients (11%) and distant metastases in 20 of 134 (15%), with 7 of 134 (5%) demonstrating both. PET/CT revealed stage IV disease in 1 of 20 (5%) patients with initial clinical stage I, 2 of 44 (5%) stage IIA, 8 of 47 (17%) stage IIB, 4 of 13 (31%) stage IIIA, 4 of 8 (50%) stage IIIB, and 1 of 2 (50%) stage IIIC. All 20 patients upstaged to stage IV were histologically confirmed. Four synchronous thyroid and 1 rectal malignancies were identified. CONCLUSION: PET/CT revealed distant metastases in 17% of asymptomatic stage IIB breast cancer patients younger than 40 y. Although guidelines of the National Comprehensive Cancer Network recommend against systemic staging in patients with stage II disease, our data suggest that PET/CT might be valuable in younger patients with stage IIB and III disease. Use of PET/CT in younger patients has the potential to reduce the morbidity and cost of unnecessary therapies in young breast cancer patients.