Mental health issues—anxiety, depression, suicidal ideation and behavior—are prevalent among students of higher education. The COVID-19 pandemic further affected students’ daily life through academic and socioeconomic disturbances. We set out to investigate students’ mental health amidst the COVID-19 pandemic and conducted a cross-sectional online survey at higher education institutions in Lithuania in 2021. The questionnaire consisted of the Hospital Anxiety and Depression scale (HADS) and the Sense of Coherence scale (SOC-3) questionnaires, evaluation of suicidal risk, experiences during the COVID-19 pandemic and self-rated health status (SRHS). Among 1001 students who completed the survey, the prevalence of clinically relevant anxiety was high (46.6%) and contrasted with the lower prevalence of depression (11.1%). 37.5% of all students admitted that they had thought about suicide at least once during their lifetime and a similar number of students thought about suicide during the previous year. High levels of anxiety and depression were statistically significant predictors of suicidal ideation and planning during the past year in binary regression models. High SRHS (higher score refers to more positive health status) was the only significant independent variable associated with less frequent suicidal attempts in the past year (p < 0.01, OR = 0.29, 95% CI = 0.12 to 0.66). Our study highlights anxiety and suicidality to be burdensome mental health issues among higher education students in Lithuania during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Background and Objectives: The COVID-19 pandemic has disrupted routine sleep and work patterns in the general population. We conducted an anonymous online survey among white-collar workers from various finance, IT and technology companies in Lithuania to define factors associated with worse sleep quality and diminished productivity during a COVID-19 lockdown. Materials and Methods: Employees of selected companies in Lithuania completed an anonymous questionnaire online that included the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI), The Sleep Locus of Control (SLOC), the Generalized Anxiety Disorder Scale-7 (GAD-7), and the World Health Organization’s Health and Work Performance Questionnaire (WHO-HPQ). Respondents also provided information about their sleep hygiene, physical activity and alcohol use. Results: Data of 114 respondents (56, 49.1% male) were used for analysis. Among them, 49 (43.0%) suffered from poor sleep and 29 (25.4%) had clinically relevant levels of anxiety. However, there were only negligible levels of absenteeism in the sample (a median of zero hours of work lost over the past month). In a stepwise linear regression model (F(5,108) = 11.457, p < 0.001, R2adj = 0.316), high levels of anxiety, daily hours spent using the screen, use of electronic devices in the bedroom, smoking in the evening, and COVID-19-related changes in appetite were associated with worse sleep quality. Absenteeism was associated with physical activity of moderate intensity and decreased self-reported productivity during the pandemic (F(2,111) = 7.570, p = 0.001, R2adj = 0.104). However, there was no strong relationship between sleep-related variables (i.e., sleep hygiene, sleep locus of control, quality of sleep) or levels of anxiety and measures of work productivity. Conclusions: Our findings suggest that while bad sleep hygiene, anxiety, and changes in appetite are associated with worse sleep quality among white-collar workers during the pandemic, work productivity may remain high irrespective of disrupted sleep.

Background and Objectives: Suicidality among adolescents is a global mental health issue. However, the post-suicidal care of minors is insufficient and lacks complexity, as repeated attempts occur. Further, little is known about the social (i.e., family setting) and psychological (for example, exposure to bullying, suicidality, or addiction within a close environment) backgrounds of minors who engage in suicidal behavior in Lithuania. Thus, the aim of our study was to evaluate and compare psychosocial factors that may influence minors’ decisions to attempt suicide for the first time and then repeatedly and to extract notes for future clinical practice. Materials and Methods: Data from 187 cases of suicide attempts by minors treated at the Children’s Hospital of Vilnius University Santara Clinics from January 2011 to January 2018 was obtained and analyzed. Results: The data showed that 48.7% of minors hospitalized because of a suicide attempt had a history of previous suicide attempts. Minors who attempted suicide repeatedly were more often engaged in non-suicidal self-injurious behavior (p = 0.033). Further, a small number had experienced suicide within their close surroundings (p = 0.045). The comparative analysis did not reveal any significant differences in psychosocial backgrounds between first-time attempters and those who attempted suicide for at least a second time. Conclusions: Social and psychological support after a suicide attempt in a pediatric setting is lacking efficiency, as minors who repeatedly attempt suicide suffer from similar psychosocial burdens. Complex and targeted follow-up care is needed.

Objective Higher education students express high levels of suicidal ideation. However, data on students’ knowledge of suicide and attitudes toward seeking professional psychological help are lacking. Therefore, a cross-sectional study was conducted to evaluate students’ suicidal ideation, suicide literacy and attitudes toward seeking professional psychological help, and to assess whether these variables were interrelated. Methods Higher education students completed an online survey that consisted of 12 questions on suicide literacy (based on the Literacy of Suicide Scale), the Attitudes Toward Seeking Professional Psychological Help Scale and the Suicidal Ideation Attributes Scale. Results A total of 2004 students completed the survey. Female students and biomedical students showed the highest suicide literacy and most positive help-seeking attitudes. Higher study year was associated with more positive help-seeking attitudes. Art students expressed the highest levels of suicidal ideation. Suicide literacy had a weak positive correlation with help-seeking attitudes (Spearman’s rho = 0.186). Conclusions Suicidal ideation, suicide literacy and help-seeking attitudes may differ according to student’s gender, study year and study field. Better suicide literacy may promote psychological help-seeking behavior.

Background The study measures and compares the rates of anxiety, depression, sense of coherence, subjective health status, suicidal risk among students from 12 universities of Lithuania. Methods Six-hundred-fifty-eight students from different academic fields completed a questionnaire that consisted of 23 questions and included Hospital Anxiety and Depression(HAD), Sence of Coherence(SOC-3) scales, suicide risk and subjective health status assessments. The data was analised by Microsoft Excel, R commander and IBM SPSS programmes. Results Males had higher depression(p = 0,025), but lower anxiety prevalence(p &lt; 0,001) than females. The total score of depression symptoms subscale (5,min=0,max=19) indicated no risk of depression, although a mild anxiety level was found (the total score is 10,min=0,max=21). Students scored 3 points out of 6 in SOC-3 and evaluated their health for 2 points out of 5. Weak suicide risk was found in 43,2%(n = 284) of all respondents, moderate - 12%(n = 79) and high - 3,2%(n = 21). Students from the field of arts had the highest depression rate(7), whereas those from social sciences had the lowest rate(3)(p &lt; 0,001). Students who live alone during years of study evaluated their health the worst(p = 0,004), had higher risk of depression(p = 0,038), more often felt sadness and apathy during the last 12 months(p = 0,045). Conclusions The respondents have mild anxiety symptoms, low sence of coherence, their subjective health status is good. More than half of students had suicidal thoughts. Male gender, academical field of arts, living alone during studies potentially increase the risk of depression, whereas female gender is related with higher anxiety symptoms. This study motivates the universities of Lithuania to strengthen the psychological support for students. Key messages The survey unveiled the need for higher education institutes to put more effort on reducing students‘ anxiety levels and it also highlighted the problem of suicide ideation among students. This study motivates the main universities of Lithuania to strengthen the psychological support for students.