COVID-19 pandemic impact on adolescent mental health: a reassessment accounting for development.
Eur Child Adolesc Psychiatry
; 33(8): 2615-2627, 2024 Aug.
Article
em En
| MEDLINE
| ID: mdl-38170282
ABSTRACT
Current prospective reports suggest a pandemic-related increase in adolescent mental health problems. We examine whether age-related change over 11-14 years accounts for this increase. Mothers and adolescents in a UK-based birth cohort (Wirral Child Health and Development Study; WCHADS; N = 737) reported on adolescent depression and behavioural problems pre-pandemic (December 2019-March 2020), mid-pandemic (June 2020-March 2021) and late pandemic (July 2021-March 2022). Analysis used repeated measures models for over-dispersed Poisson counts with an adolescent-specific intercept with age as a time-varying covariate. Maturational curves for girls, but not for boys, showed a significant increase in self-reported depression symptoms over ages 11-14 years. Behavioural problems decreased for both. After adjusting for age-related change, girls' depression increased by only 13% at mid-pandemic and returned to near pre-pandemic level at late pandemic (mid versus late - 12%), whereas boys' depression increased by 31% and remained elevated (mid versus late 1%). Age-adjusted behavioural problems increased for both (girls 40%, boys 41%) and worsened from mid- to late pandemic (girls 33%, boys 18%). Initial reports of a pandemic-related increase in depression in young adolescent girls could be explained by a natural maturational rise. In contrast, maturational decreases in boys' depression and both boys' and girls' behavioural problems may mask an effect of the pandemic.
Palavras-chave
Texto completo:
1
Coleções:
01-internacional
Base de dados:
MEDLINE
Assunto principal:
Saúde Mental
/
Depressão
/
COVID-19
Limite:
Adolescent
/
Child
/
Female
/
Humans
/
Male
País/Região como assunto:
Europa
Idioma:
En
Revista:
Eur Child Adolesc Psychiatry
Assunto da revista:
PEDIATRIA
/
PSIQUIATRIA
Ano de publicação:
2024
Tipo de documento:
Article
País de afiliação:
Reino Unido