ABSTRACT
Graphical Introduction The SARS-CoV-2 pandemic has had a great impact on the physical and psychological health of the population. The aim of this study was to evaluate child and adolescent mental health in a population cohort along the 2020-2021 school year. Methods This was a prospective longitudinal study of a cohort of children from 5 to 14 years of age in Catalonia, Spain, performed from September 2020 to July 2021. The participants were randomly selected and accompanied by their primary care paediatrician. Evaluation of risk of psychopathology was performed using the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ) carried out by one of the legal guardians of the child. We also collected sociodemographic and health variables of the participants and their nuclear family. Data were collected by an online survey through the RedCap platform at the beginning of the academic year and at the end of each trimester (4 cuts). Results At the beginning of the school year, 9.8% of the patients were probable cases of psychopathology compared to 6.2% at the end of the year. The perception of the level of preoccupation of the children for their health and that of their family was related to presenting psychopathology, especially at the beginning of the year, with the perception of a good family atmosphere being always related to lower risk. No variable related to COVID-19 was associated with an altered SDQ result. Conclusions Along the 2020-2021 school year, the percentage of children with a probability of presenting psychopathology decreased from 9.8% to 6.2%.
ABSTRACT
INTRODUCTION: The SARS-CoV-2 pandemic has had a great impact on the physical and psychological health of the population. The aim of this study was to evaluate child and adolescent mental health in a population cohort along the 2020-2021 school year. METHODS: This was a prospective longitudinal study of a cohort of children from 5-14 years of age in Catalonia, Spain, performed from September 2020 to July 2021. The participants were randomly selected and accompanied by their primary care paediatrician. Evaluation of risk of psychopathology was performed using the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ) carried out by one of the legal guardians of the child. We also collected sociodemographic and health variables of the participants and their nuclear family. Data were collected by an online survey through the RedCap platform at the beginning of the academic year and at the end of each trimester (4 cuts). RESULTS: At the beginning of the school year, 9.8% of the patients were probable cases of psychopathology compared to 6.2% at the end of the year. The perception of the level of preoccupation of the children for their health and that of their family was related to presenting psychopathology, especially at the beginning of the year, with the perception of a good family atmosphere being always related to lower risk. No variable related to COVID-19 was associated with an altered SDQ result. CONCLUSIONS: Along the 2020-2021 school year, the percentage of children with a probability of presenting psychopathology decreased from 9.8% to 6.2%.
Subject(s)
COVID-19 , Mental Disorders , Humans , Child , Adolescent , Mental Health , COVID-19/epidemiology , Pandemics , Spain/epidemiology , Mental Disorders/epidemiology , Longitudinal Studies , Prospective Studies , SARS-CoV-2 , SchoolsABSTRACT
Introduction: The SARS-CoV-2 pandemic has had a great impact on the physical and psychological health of the population. The aim of our study was to assess child and adolescent mental health in a cohort throughout the 2020-2021 school year. Methods: We conducted a longitudinal prospective study in a cohort of children aged 5 to 14 years in Catalonia, Spain, from September 2020 to July 2021. Participants were randomly selected and followed up by their primary care paediatricians. The risk of mental health problems was assessed with the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ), completed by one of the legal guardians of the child. In addition, we obtained information on the sociodemographic and health characteristics of the participants and their nuclear families. We collected the data by means of an online survey through the REDCap platform at the beginning of the academic year and at the end of each term (4 time points). Results: At the beginning of the school year, 9.8% of participants were cases of probable psychopathology compared to 6.2% at the end of the year. The perceived level of worry of the children for their own health and the health of their families was associated with the presence of psychopathology, especially at the beginning of the year, while the perception of a good family atmosphere was consistently associated with a decreased risk. No variable related to COVID-19 was associated with abnormal results in the SDQ. Conclusions: During the 2020-2021 school year, the percentage of children with probable psychopathology decreased from 9.8% to 6.2%.
ABSTRACT
Introduction: The SARS-CoV-2 pandemic has had a great impact on the physical and psychological health of the population. The aim of our study was to assess child and adolescent mental health in a cohort throughout the 2020-2021 school year. Methods: We conducted a longitudinal prospective study in a cohort of children aged 5 to 14 years in Catalonia, Spain, from September 2020 to July 2021. Participants were randomly selected and followed up by their primary care paediatricians. The risk of mental health problems was assessed with the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ), completed by one of the legal guardians of the child. In addition, we obtained information on the sociodemographic and health characteristics of the participants and their nuclear families. We collected the data by means of an online survey through the REDCap platform at the beginning of the academic year and at the end of each term (4 time points). Results: At the beginning of the school year, 9.8% of participants were cases of probable psychopathology compared to 6.2% at the end of the year. The perceived level of worry of the children for their own health and the health of their families was associated with the presence of psychopathology, especially at the beginning of the year, while the perception of a good family atmosphere was consistently associated with a decreased risk. No variable related to COVID-19 was associated with abnormal results in the SDQ. Conclusions: During the 2020-2021 school year, the percentage of children with probable psychopathology decreased from 9.8% to 6.2%.
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Introducción: La pandemia por SARS-CoV-2 ha tenido un alto impacto en la salud física y psicológica de la población. Nuestro objetivo fue evaluar la salud mental infanto-juvenil de una cohorte poblacional a lo largo del curso 2020-21. Métodos: estudio longitudinal y prospectivo de una cohorte de niños escolarizados entre 5 y 14 años en Cataluña entre septiembre 2020 y julio 2021. Los participantes fueron seleccionados de forma aleatoria y seguidos por el pediatra de referencia en la atención primaria. La evaluación del riesgo de psicopatología fue realizada a través del cuestionario Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ) contestada por un tutor legal del niño. Fueron recogidas también variables sociodemográficas y de salud del individuo y su núcleo de convivencia. Los datos fueron recogidos mediante una encuesta on line a través de la plataforma RedCap al inicio del curso y al final de cada trimestre (4 cortes). Resultados: Al inicio del curso escolar el 9,8% de los pacientes fueron casos probables de psicopatología, frente al 6,2% de final de curso. La percepción del nivel de preocupación de los niños por su salud y la de su familia se relacionó con presentar psicopatología, especialmente al inicio del curso, mientras que la percepción de un buen ambiente familiar se relacionó en todo momento con menor riesgo. Ninguna variable relacionada con el COVID-19 se asoció con resultado alterado del SDQ. Conclusiones: A lo largo del curso escolar 2020-2021 el porcentaje de niños con probabilidad de presentar psicopatología mejoró y pasó del 9,8% al 6,2%.
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INTRODUCTION: The aim of this project was to evaluate the psychopathological impact of home confinement and school closing between March and September 2020 on the mental health of Catalonian children. METHODS: PEDSAME study: first cross-sectional section (beginning of the school year) and retrospective data (lockdown), carried out through the network of Primary Care pediatricians in the Catalan population between 5 and 14 years (included) from 09/14/2020 to 10/30/2020 in a random sample. Data were collected with an online survey through the RedCap platform at the beginning of the school year. The main variable was the result of the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire answered by parents to assess the risk of psychopathology, in addition to other related variable. RESULTS: The results obtained at the beginning of the school year show that 9.8% of the patients were probable cases of psychopathology. The most affected group were those between 5 and 8 years. The perception of the children's level of concern for their health and that of their family was a risk factor for presenting psychopathology, while the good family environment was a protective factor. Emotional and behavioral symptoms, sleep disorders and problematic use of screens were detected more frequently during confinement than at the beginning of the school year. CONCLUSIONS: Confinement and the absence of schooling for 6 months had a negative impact on the mental health of the child-adolescent population who showed worse indicators than the previous year.
Subject(s)
COVID-19 , Pandemics , Adolescent , Communicable Disease Control , Cross-Sectional Studies , Humans , Mental Health , Retrospective Studies , SARS-CoV-2 , SchoolsABSTRACT
BACKGROUND: Specialist palliative care team (SPCT) involvement has been shown to improve symptom control and end-of-life care for patients with cancer, but little is known as to how these have been impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. Here, we report SPCT involvement during the first wave of the pandemic and compare outcomes for patients with cancer who received and did not receive SPCT input from multiple European cancer centres. METHODS: From the OnCovid repository (N = 1318), we analysed cancer patients aged ⩾18 diagnosed with COVID-19 between 26 February and 22 June 2020 who had complete specialist palliative care team data (SPCT+ referred; SPCT- not referred). RESULTS: Of 555 eligible patients, 317 were male (57.1%), with a median age of 70 years (IQR 20). At COVID-19 diagnosis, 44.7% were on anti-cancer therapy and 53.3% had ⩾1 co-morbidity. Two hundred and six patients received SPCT input for symptom control (80.1%), psychological support (54.4%) and/or advance care planning (51%). SPCT+ patients had more 'Do not attempt cardio-pulmonary resuscitation' orders completed prior to (12.6% versus 3.7%) and during admission (50% versus 22.1%, p < 0.001), with more SPCT+ patients deemed suitable for treatment escalation (50% versus 22.1%, p < 0.001). SPCT involvement was associated with higher discharge rates from hospital for end-of-life care (9.7% versus 0%, p < 0.001). End-of-life anticipatory prescribing was higher in SPCT+ patients, with opioids (96.3% versus 47.1%) and benzodiazepines (82.9% versus 41.2%) being used frequently for symptom control. CONCLUSION: SPCT referral facilitated symptom control, emergency care and discharge planning, as well as high rates of referral for psychological support than previously reported. Our study highlighted the critical need of SPCTs for patients with cancer during the pandemic and should inform service planning for this population.
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INTRODUCTION: The aim of this project was to evaluate the psychopathological impact of home confinement and school closing between March and September 2020 on the mental health of Catalonian children. METHODS: PEDSAME study: first cross-sectional section (beginning of the school year) and retrospective data (lockdown), carried out through the network of Primary Care pediatricians in the Catalan population between 5 and 14 years (included) from 09/14/2020 to 10/30/2020 in a random sample. Data were collected with an online survey through the RedCap platform at the beginning of the school year. The main variable was the result of the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire answered by parents to assess the risk of psychopathology, in addition to other related variable. RESULTS: The results obtained at the beginning of the school year show that 9.8% of the patients were probable cases of psychopathology. The most affected group were those between 5 and 8 years. The perception of the children's level of concern for their health and that of their family was a risk factor for presenting psychopathology, while the good family environment was a protective factor. Emotional and behavioral symptoms, sleep disorders and problematic use of screens were detected more frequently during confinement than at the beginning of the school year. CONCLUSIONS: Confinement and the absence of schooling for 6 months had a negative impact on the mental health of the child-adolescent population who showed worse indicators than the previous year.
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The SARS-Cov-2 pandemic significantly impacted on oncology practice across the globe. There is uncertainty as to the contribution of patients' demographics and oncological features on severity and mortality from Covid-19 and little guidance as to the role of anti-cancer and anti-Covid-19 therapy in this population. In a multi-center study of 890 cancer patients with confirmed Covid-19 we demonstrated a worsening gradient of mortality from breast cancer to haematological malignancies and showed that male gender, older age, and number of co-morbidities identifies a subset of patients with significantly worse mortality rates from Covid-19. Provision of chemotherapy, targeted therapy and immunotherapy did not worsen mortality. Exposure to antimalarials was associated with improved mortality rates independent of baseline prognostic factors. This study highlights the clinical utility of demographic factors for individualized risk-stratification of patients and support further research into emerging anti-Covid-19 therapeutics in SARS-Cov-2 infected cancer patients.
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We describe the outcomes in cancer patients during the initial outbreak of the COVID-19 in Europe from the retrospective, multi-center observational OnCovid study. We identified 204 cancer patients from eight centers in the United Kingdom, Italy, and Spain aged > 18 (mean = 69) and diagnosed with COVID-19 between February 26th and April 1st, 2020. A total of 127 (62%) were male, 184 (91%) had a diagnosis of solid malignancy, and 103 (51%) had non-metastatic disease. A total of 161 (79%) had > 1 co-morbidity. A total of 141 (69%) patients had > 1 COVID-19 complication. A total of 36 (19%) were escalated to high-dependency or intensive care. A total of 59 (29%) died, 53 (26%) were discharged, and 92 (45%) were in-hospital survivors. Mortality was higher in patients aged > 65 (36% versus 16%), in those with > 2 co-morbidities (40% versus 18%) and developing > 1 complication from COVID-19 (38% versus 4%, p = 0.004). Multi-variable analyses confirmed age > 65 and > 2 co-morbidities to predict for patient mortality independent of tumor stage, active malignancy, or anticancer therapy. During the early outbreak of SARS-CoV-2 infection in Europe co-morbid burden and advancing age predicted for adverse disease course in cancer patients. The ongoing OnCovid study will allow us to compare risks and outcomes in cancer patients between the initial and later stages of the COVID-19 pandemic.