The effects of anxiety about their parents getting COVID-19 infection on children's mental health.

Although the effects of COVID-19 on children's physical health are relatively less serious, it is known that pandemic has serious effects on children's mental health. Anxiety and related symptoms increase among children during this period. The main purpose of this study is to measure children's anxiety about their parents and themselves with structured scales. Children who applied to the pediatric outpatient clinic were included in the study. Participants were asked questions about their parents' and their own concerns about getting COVID-19. Psychiatric symptoms of the participants were evaluated with the Revised Child Anxiety and Depression Scale, the Coronavirus Anxiety Scale, and Anxiety Sensitivity Index for Children. Increased social phobia, separation anxiety, generalized anxiety, total anxiety, total internalizing disorder scores, increased anxiety sensitivity, and increased coronavirus anxiety were detected among children who have increased subjective anxiety for themselves about getting COVID-19. In addition, increased social phobia, depression, separation anxiety, generalized anxiety, total anxiety, total internalizing disorder scores, and anxiety sensitivity were also detected among children who have increased subjective anxiety for their parents about getting COVID-19. In logistic regression, panic, separation anxiety, and generalized anxiety scores significantly predicted children's anxiety for their parents, and separation anxiety and generalized anxiety were shown to predict anxiety for themselves. CONCLUSION: Children who have increased subjective anxiety about their parents and themselves also have increased anxiety, anxiety sensitivity, and coronavirus anxiety scores. This is the first study which determines that children who are worried about their parents and themselves have higher levels of anxiety, depression symptoms, and anxiety sensitivity. WHAT IS KNOWN: • Although COVID19 pandemic's negative effects on the mental health of children and adolescents has been investigated and consistently demonstrated, the children's anxiety about their parents getting infection were less researched. WHAT IS NEW: • Children's anxiety about their parents getting SARS-Cov-2 infection was investigated with the questionnaires. • The scale scores of the children who expressed their anxiety with open-ended questions were statistically significantly higher.

THE ASSOCIATION BETWEEN ALTMETRIC, PLUMX METRICS AND CITATION COUNT OF PUBLICATIONS: A CROSS-SECTIONAL STUDY AMONG TOP CHILD AND ADOLESCENT PSYCHIATRY JOURNALS.

BACKGROUND: Altmetric Attention Score (AAS) and PlumX Metrics are becoming important to evaluate the impact of the publication in addition to classical scientific rating method such as citation count and impact factor. These metrics collect data about publications' tweet count, Facebook interaction count and other social interactions. In this study, it is aimed to examine the association between AAS, PlumX Metrics and citation count of top child and adolescent psychiatry. METHODS: We identified the five journals and retrospectively analysed the publications published in 2019. All the original research articles, met analysis, and reviews were analysed. The articles were divided into two groups as original articles/research articles and meta-analysis/systematic review. We have hypothesized that there could be a positive correlation between AAS and PlumX Metrics data and citation count among these journals and there could be a difference between AAS, PlumX scores and citation count between original articles/research articles and meta-analysis/systematic review as their reading potential is different. RESULTS: We have found a significant positive correlation between citation count, AAS and PlumX Metrics. This association continued after controlling the journal impact factor. In linear regression analysis, type of publication, total count of tweets, and Mendeley reads predicted the citation count. CONCLUSION: In addition to the classical methods measuring the quality of the articles such as the total citation count and impact factor, the importance of AAS and PlumX Metrics has been increasing. It is important to share scientific publications on these platforms in order to increase the impact of the articles.

A Retrospective Evaluation on Demographic, Phenomenological, and Comorbidity Features of Pediatric Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder.

ABSTRACT: The impacts of sex, age of onset, phenotype, and comorbidity on clinical features were explored in a large clinical sample with pediatric obsessive-compulsive disorder (p-OCD) (n = 457), along with concomitant specific features in the framework of different symptom dimensions/phenotypes, by a retrospective cross-sectional evaluation design. The most prevalent phenotype was obsession/checking (almost half), and the clinical features belonging to different phenotypes varied among sexes, age of onset, severity, and comorbidities. The contamination and aggressive obsessions, along with the compulsions such as cleaning and repeating routine activities, were the most prevalent symptoms, which were prevalently accompanied by generalized anxiety disorder, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, and depression. Females with OCD were likely prone to exhibit comorbid internalizing disorders, whereas males were prone to externalizing. This recent study on a large Turkish clinical sample of p-OCD followed up within 5 years, highlighting separate evidence on subtyping of p-OCD in phenotype and comorbidity frame.

Serum Apelin-13 Levels Are Decreased Among Adolescents Diagnosed with Major Depressive Disorder.

BACKGROUND: Apelin-13 have potential effect on mood because of high expression in the hypothalamus. In this study, we aimed to investigate the serum apelin-13 levels among adolescents with major depressive disorder. SUBJECT AND METHODS: A total of 42 patients between the ages of 12 and 18 with a primary diagnosis of major depressive disorder have been included. Depression scores of both groups were measured by the Children's Depression Inventory. Serum apelin-13 concentrations were measured by a commercially available kit based on enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) method. RESULTS: The mean serum apelin-13 levels in the patients with MDD was 173.08±106.33 pg/ml, whereas it was 251.75±167.82 pg/ml in healthy controls. The difference between groups in terms of mean serum apelin-13 levels was statistically significant (p=0.018, Cohen's d=-0.571). CONCLUSION: This is the first study to examine the serum apelin-13 levels in adolescents diagnosed with major depressive disorder. Lower serum apelin-13 levels were found in depressed adolescents.

An exploration of parental awareness, knowledge, and concerns related to COVID-19.

BACKGROUND: COVID-19 rapidly spread worldwide with high morbidity and mortality. In this study, we aimed to detect parental concerns along with their awareness of and attitudes towards COVID-19 among patients admitted to our inpatient and outpatient clinics. METHODS: This study was conducted at a children's hospital with 141 parents of children who were patients in the inpatient and outpatient clinics. Parents were asked to complete an anonymous questionnaire and psychiatric scales that included the Beck Depression Inventory, Beck Anxiety Inventory (BAI), and Impact of Events Scale-Revised form (IES-R). RESULTS: The study sample consisted of 141 parents, of which 59 were parents of inpatients and 82 were parents of outpatients. The most known COVID-19 symptoms were fever, difficulty in breathing, and cough, respectively. The most preferred precaution was "staying at home." We found a significant positive correlation between the number of precautions and BAI score (R = .169, P = .046). Inpatients' parents IES-R scores were significantly higher than outpatients' parents IES-R scores. CONCLUSIONS: Parents were found to be aware of the COVID-19 pandemic regardless of education status and family income. Participants' IES-R scores revealed significant differences in terms of COVID-19 impact on psychological health between the parents of inpatient and outpatient children; inpatients' parents were more concerned about COVID-19.

Evaluation of the Anxiety Level of Mothers of Children with Epilepsy during the COVID-19 Pandemic Period.

BACKGROUND AND AIM: Although anyone can be affected by the COVID-19 pandemic, it may cause additional concern for people with chronic conditions. Epilepsy is the most common neurological disease in childhood and adolescence. The aim of this study was to determine anxiety levels among the mothers of children under follow-up for epilepsy in our clinic during the COVID-19 pandemic. METHODS: The study group consisted of the mothers of epilepsy patients who were under follow-up in the pediatric neurology outpatient clinic of the tertiary care center and were scheduled for a routine examination during the COVID-19 pandemic. The mothers' anxiety levels according to the Beck Anxiety Inventory and their opinions about COVID-19 in relation to their child were assessed and compared based on whether the mother/patient attended their appointments in person and whether the child had frequent or infrequent seizures. RESULTS: There was no statistically significant difference in anxiety level between the mothers of 64 children with epilepsy who attended their appointment during the pandemic and those of the mothers of 52 who did not attend their appointment. However, the mothers of children with frequent seizures had significantly higher anxiety levels. CONCLUSION: Anxiety level of mothers whose children have frequent seizures was significantly higher compared to mothers whose children have infrequent seizures. It is important to be aware about this point and using telemedicine approach in suitable population and postpone routine outpatient follow-up appointments as much as possible.

Assessment of the knowledge and awareness of pediatric residents and pediatricians about autism spectrum disorder at a single center in Turkey.

Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) is a neurodevelopmental disorder and pediatricians play a critical role in early diagnosis. This study was conducted to evaluate the knowledge, beliefs, and experiences of pediatric residents and pediatricians about ASD. A 35-item questionnaire consisting of two sections was administered. The diagnostic features section consisted of questions measuring the level of knowledge about diagnostic criteria of ASD. The general knowledge and beliefs section consisted of questions about beliefs and experiences regarding ASD. The study consisted of 101 participants. Mean score obtained by all participants from the diagnostic features section was 5.78 ± 1.65. The mean scores obtained by residents and pediatricians from the diagnostic features section were 5.35 ± 1.5 and 6.31 ± 1.68. Pediatricians obtained higher scores significantly than residents from diagnostic features section (t = -2.99, p = 0.004). The mean scores obtained by residents and pediatricians from section of general knowledge and beliefs were 13.69 ± 3 and 14.48 ± 3.15. This difference was not significant (t = -1.27, p = 0.225). This study suggests that participants' knowledge and awareness about ASD was insufficient and while pediatricians knew more about the diagnostic criteria, their awareness and approach regarding ASD were no different from pediatric residents in general practice.

Evaluation of Adolescents' Awareness of Seat Belt Use and the Relationship with Risky Behaviors.

The one of the leading causes of adolescent morbidity and mortality worldwide is motor vehicle accidents (MVA). The use of seat belts significantly lowers MVA fatalities and injuries. The aim of this study is to investigate adolescent seat belt usage patterns and relation with risky behaviors. The study conducted at two medical institutions with non-immigrant and literate adolescents aged 12-18. Demographics, seat belt use, and risk-taking behavior were collected through questionnaires. 726 teenagers (422 girls and 304 boys) with an average age of 176.7 ± 23.37 months participated in the study. Parents' educational levels and front-seat belt use have been found to be correlated. Comparatively to non-users, seat belt users demonstrated lower risk scores (total, traffic, substance, and social). The use of seat belts was significantly predicted by traffic risk, according to logistic regression. The frequency of seatbelt use was higher among participants from cities with higher socioeconomic status. As a result, it was found that adolescents who exhibited more risky behaviors had a lower frequency of seat belt use and seat belt use was associated with socioeconomic level and parental education level. It is thought that population-based studies to be conducted on this subject are important.

Serum trimethylamine N-oxide and lipopolysaccharide binding protein levels among children diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder.

In the literature, there have been several studies available investigating the relationship between autism spectrum disorder and intestinal permeability. In this study, it is aimed to examine the relationship between the levels of trimethylamine N-oxide (TMAO), which is a parameter associated with intestinal permeability, and lipopolysaccharide binding protein (LBP), which is a marker associated with bacterial translocation from the intestine, in patients with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and healthy controls. Fifty-three children with ASD as the patient group and 30 healthy children as the control group have been included in the study. The diagnostic evaluation has been made according to DSM-5 criteria. According to the obtained results, there has been no significant difference between groups in terms of serum TMAO and LBP levels. Considering the existence of various studies that found different results on ASD and intestinal permeability, it is thought that the studies conducted in this field that did not find statistically different results will also make a contribution to the literature.

Maternal temperament and anxiety sensitivity in children with foreign body aspiration.

OBJECTIVE: Foreign body aspiration is one of the childhood emergencies that thoracic surgeons are interested in, and it can cause morbidity and mortality. Although the relationship between various behavioral problems related to children and foreign body aspiration has been investigated so far, there is no study investigating the relationship between maternal temperament and anxiety sensitivity. This study aimed to investigate the relationship between maternal emotional temperament, anxiety sensitivity, and foreign body aspiration. METHODS: Mothers of 18 children with foreign body aspiration have been evaluated by a thoracic surgeon, and 18 healthy controls have also been included in the study. Maternal emotional temperament has been measured with the Temperament Evaluation of Memphis, Pisa, Paris, and San Diego - Auto questionnaire scale, and anxiety sensitivity has been measured with the Anxiety Sensitivity Index-3. RESULTS: There has been no statistically significant difference between groups in terms of maternal emotional temperament and anxiety sensitivity. In the logistic regression analysis conducted to determine the predictors of foreign body aspiration, it is determined that the mother's anxious temperament has predicted foreign body aspiration significantly. CONCLUSION: As a result of the study, it can be concluded that mothers' anxious temperament can be considered a risk factor for foreign body aspiration because it affects parenting skills and children's ability to manage behavioral problems. Consistent results could be able to be obtained with studies including larger samples on the subject.

functional outcome in late adolescence/early adulthood of patients with autism spectrum disorder and its relationships with parental burnout and depression: A preliminary multi-center, cross-sectional study.

The aim of this study is to determine the functioning of adults with autism spectrum disorders (ASDs) diagnosed in childhood and depression and burnout levels among their parents. A total of 261 adults with ASDs and their parents were recruited for the study. Both parents completed the Beck Depression and Maslach Burnout Inventories and reported the functioning of their adult offspring with ASDs. Only 5.4 % of our sample reported "good" or "very good" outcomes. The most common psychiatric comorbidities were intellectual disabilities and attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder. Maternal burnout and depression scores were significantly elevated compared to those of fathers. There is an undeniable urgent need for more research to identify the needs of adults and families suffering from ASD. Modifications for those with ASD may have to be made for support in workplaces, achieving driving licenses, using public transportation and attendance at tertiary education.