Longitudinal Changes in Swiss Adolescent’s Mental Health Outcomes from before and during the COVID-19 Pandemic

Ertanir, Beyhan; Kassis, Wassilis; Garrote, Ariana

doi:10.3390/ijerph182312734

Cited by 25 publications

(45 citation statements)

References 38 publications

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“…Previous research showing increased mental health problems in adolescents from before to during the pandemic took place in the first months of the pandemic (i.e., between April and July 2020, mostly during the first lockdown) 5 , 7 – 9 . Interestingly, recent research at later stages into the pandemic (i.e., from July 2020) suggests that mental health problems of adolescents increased during the first months of the COVID-19 pandemic, but decreased or remained stable later into the pandemic 35 – 39 , which resembles our results of stable trajectories of perceived stress and symptoms of depression and anxiety during the pandemic (i.e., from September 2020). It could be that adolescents habituated to the (drastic) changes of daily life (in the first months of the pandemic), and therefore showed stable trajectories over the course of this study.…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 84%

Trajectories of adolescent perceived stress and symptoms of depression and anxiety during the COVID-19 pandemic

Loon

Creemers

Vogelaar

et al. 2022

Sci Rep

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Adolescents might be particularly affected by the drastic social changes as a consequence of the COVID-19 pandemic, given the increased stress-sensitivity and importance of the social environment in this developmental phase. In order to examine heterogeneity during the pandemic, the current study aimed to identify whether subgroups of adolescents could be distinguished based on their levels of perceived stress and symptoms of depression and anxiety. In addition, we examined which prepandemic factors predicted these trajectories. Adolescents were assessed before the pandemic (N = 188, Mage = 13.49, SD = 0.81) and at three timepoints during the pandemic (i.e., eight, ten, and 15 months after the start of the pandemic in the Netherlands). Results showed no support for distinct trajectories of perceived stress, adolescents experienced stable moderate levels during the pandemic. In contrast, results showed three trajectories for depression and anxiety. The majority of adolescents reported stable low or moderate levels and one small subgroup reported high levels of depression and anxiety that decreased during the pandemic. Certain prepandemic factors predicted higher initial levels of stress and symptoms of depression and anxiety during the pandemic. To support adolescents with prepandemic vulnerabilities, strategies could be developed, for instance enhancing adolescents’ social support.

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Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 84%

Trajectories of adolescent perceived stress and symptoms of depression and anxiety during the COVID-19 pandemic

Loon

Creemers

Vogelaar

et al. 2022

Sci Rep

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“…Study characteristics are presented in the Table 1 . Of the 22 studies, five were from Germany [ 29 , 38 , 41 , 42 , 46 ], four from Norway [ 30 , 34 , 40 , 47 ] and the United Kingdom [ 21 , 27 , 37 , 45 ], two from Italy [ 31 , 33 ], Iceland [ 35 , 44 ], Netherlands [ 36 , 39 ], Switzerland [ 28 , 32 ] and one from Israel [ 43 ]. The majority were conducted in spring/summer 2020 (17 effects), followed by winter 2020/spring 2021 (five effects) and autumn 2020 (four effects).…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Increase of depression among children and adolescents after the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic in Europe: a systematic review and meta-analysis

Ludwig-Walz

Dannheim

Pfadenhauer

et al. 2022

Child Adolesc Psychiatry Ment Health

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Background Research points to a high depression burden among youth during the COVID-19 pandemic; however, a lack of systematic evidence exists. We determine the change in depression symptoms among children and adolescents during COVID-19 compared to pre-pandemic baselines. By using country differences in pandemic-related restrictions and school closures in Europe as quasi-experimental design, we evaluate policy impacts on depression. Methods In this systematic review and meta-analysis, following the PRISMA statement, we searched six databases (MEDLINE, EMBASE, PsycINFO, Cochrane Central, Web of Science, WHO COVID-19) using a peer-reviewed search string up until March 18, 2022 with citation tracking and grey literature searches. No limitations regarding language and effect measures existed. We included studies that compared (1) general depression symptoms or (2) clinically relevant depression rates in children and adolescents (≤ 19 years) before and during the COVID-19 pandemic in Europe. The validated Oxford Stringency Index was used as indicator for pandemic-related restrictions. Screening for eligibility, extracting data from published reports and from unpublished data requested directly from study authors, assessing the study risk of bias and grading certainty of evidence using the GRADE approach, were all done in duplicate. Data were pooled in a random-effects model. PROSPERO: CRD42022303714. Results Of 7,422 nonduplicate records, 22 studies with data from 868,634 participants pre-pandemic and 807,480 during pandemic, met full inclusion criteria. For the comparison of depression symptoms before and during the COVID-19 pandemic, moderate certainty of evidence was observed for general depression symptoms (standardized mean difference, 0.21 [95%CI, 0.12–0.30]; I2 = 94%) and low certainty of evidence for clinically relevant depression rates (odds ratio, 1.36 [95%CI, 1.05–1.76]; I2 = 95%) for total population. Increase in general depression symptoms was higher for male adolescents, whereas increase in clinically relevant depression rates was higher for females. Effect estimates were significantly higher when pandemic-related restrictions were more stringent or school closure occurred. Conclusion An increase in depression symptoms occurred in a pre-pandemic vs. during-pandemic comparison within the COVID-19 pandemic, whereby pandemic-related restrictions (such as school closures) resulted in a considerable effect increase. Ensuring adequate supply of mental health recovery services and long-term monitoring is of high public health relevance.

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“…From a gender perspective, a greater perception of stress by women has emerged. In most studies, the female gender was associated with an increased risk of anxiety and depression [ 59 ], with a very strong correlation confirmed on a large scale [ 60 ]. Suicide attempts also increased significantly more among girls, from three to about five times that of boys (from 99.2 to 146.8/100.000 vs. 32.1–32.3/100.000).…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Mental Health Consequences of COVID-19 Pandemic Period in the European Population: An Institutional Challenge

Fazio

Morena

Delogu

et al. 2022

IJERPH

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The worldwide spread of SARS-CoV-2 has been responsible for an infectious pandemic, with repercussions on socio-economic aspects and on the physical and mental health of the general population. The present systematic review aimed to evaluate the data belonging to the European framework, analyzing the population by age group. Original articles and reviews on the state of mental health of the general European population have been researched starting from 2021. Initially, a total of 1764 studies were found, among which a total of 75 were selected. Youth were the age group most affected by pandemic consequences on mental health, with emotional and behavioral alterations observed from a third to more than a half of children and adolescents examined. Among both adolescents and adults, the female gender had a higher prevalence of psychopathological symptoms. The main risk factors were poor social support, economic difficulties, and, in particular, unemployment or job changes. Additional individual risk factors were the perception of loneliness, the presence of pre-pandemic mental illness/distress, and some personality traits, such as neuroticism, impulsiveness, and the use of maladaptive coping strategies. Unexpectedly, the elderly maintained good resilience towards change, even if a stress factor was represented by the feeling of loneliness and poor social contact. As regards suicidal behaviors, among adolescents, there was an increase in attempts of 25%, with a greater risk for the female gender. This risk increased also among adults, in association with symptoms of anxiety and depression, and poor socio-environmental conditions. In conclusion, some population groups were found to be at greater risk of psychological burden during pandemic waves, thus representing priority targets for socio-health interventions.

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Longitudinal Changes in Swiss Adolescent’s Mental Health Outcomes from before and during the COVID-19 Pandemic

Cited by 25 publications

References 38 publications

Trajectories of adolescent perceived stress and symptoms of depression and anxiety during the COVID-19 pandemic

Trajectories of adolescent perceived stress and symptoms of depression and anxiety during the COVID-19 pandemic

Increase of depression among children and adolescents after the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic in Europe: a systematic review and meta-analysis

Mental Health Consequences of COVID-19 Pandemic Period in the European Population: An Institutional Challenge

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