학술논문

Trajectories of children and adolescents attending a psychiatric emergency unit during the COVID-19 confinements: 2020-2022 longitudinal study
Document Type
Clinical report
Source
Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and Mental Health. June 8, 2023, Vol. 17 Issue 1
Subject
Spain
Language
English
ISSN
1753-2000
Abstract
Introduction The prevalence of psychiatric disorders has not shifted widely through the COVID pandemic, except for some specific groups such as young people or women. Our objective is to examine prospectively the evolution of children and adolescents who consulted in a psychiatric emergency service during the COVID-19 confinements. Method We collected prospective clinical information about 296 young people under 18 who visited a tertiary hospital for psychiatric reasons during the confinement periods in Spain. Clinical diagnoses, suicide attempts, hospital admissions, and pharmacological prescriptions were extracted from electronic health records through 2020, 2021, and 2022. Features of those who maintained psychiatric care and those who did not were compared. Results Three out of four children and adolescents who visited the psychiatric emergency department during the confinements continued psychiatric care at the end of 2022. Those who did not showed better premorbid adjustment at baseline. During follow-up, diagnoses of neurodevelopmental disorders and eating disorders, as well as the dosage of psychotropic drug prescriptions, increased. The diagnoses of major depressive disorder and eating disorder at baseline were associated with attempting suicide during follow-up. Patients with internalizing symptoms were admitted earlier than those with externalizing symptoms but no differences were found in terms of suicide attempts. Conclusions The continuity of psychiatric care after an initial emergency visit during the confinements implied greater clinical severity, as reflected by changes in clinical diagnoses and pharmacological regimens. Emergent symptoms of depression or eating disorders after social distancing or isolation could predict subsequent suicidal behavior in young populations. Keywords: Suicide, Hospitalization, Children, SARS-COV-2, Emergency room, Psychiatric symptoms, Clinical evolution, Prognosis, Mental health
Author(s): Marina Adrados-Pérez[sup.1,2], Vicent Llorca-Bofí[sup.1,2,3], María Mur Laín[sup.1,2,4], Carla Albert Porcar[sup.1,2], Eugènia Nicolau-Subires[sup.1,2], Lucía Ibarra-Pertusa[sup.1,2], Andrea Jiménez-Mayoral[sup.1], Esther Buil-Reiné[sup.1], Filip Budny[sup.1], Belén Resa-Pérez[sup.1], Vanessa Gladys Velásquez-Acebey[sup.1], Laura Arenas-Pijoan[sup.1], María Irigoyen-Otiéano[sup.1,2,7] [...]