Experiences of parents of children with psychiatric disorder from Covid-19 pandemic and its related quarantine: A qualitative study.

Introduction: Owing to the considerable mortality caused by Covid-19, different countries have made some decisions for dealing with this virus, one of which was quarantine. It was shown that a range of behavioral and emotional changes may exacerbate in children while staying more at home, and parents may then experience these positive or negative behavioral changes. The present study was conducted to examine the experiences of families with children with psychiatric disorders in a psychiatric outpatient clinic in Iran. Method: The phenomenological method, which is a qualitative approach, was used in this study. The population was the parents of children with psychiatric disorders referred to the pediatric psychiatric clinic of Imam Hossein Hospital. Sampling was purposeful, which continued until data saturation. Finally, the number of included participants reached 14. As well, the Colaizzi method was used for data analysis. Results: The results of this study included 12 secondary codes and 10 tertiary codes, which were divided into three main thematic groups as follows: effective factors for improving behavior, effective factors for worsening behavior, and affective factors on creating a new behavior during quarantine. Conclusion: In conclusion, quarantine, social restrictions, closure of schools, and online classes can affect the mental health status of children and adolescents in different ways, especially in children with a history of psychiatric disorders.

Experiences of parents of children with psychiatric disorder from Covid‐19 pandemic and its related quarantine: A qualitative study

Introduction Owing to the considerable mortality caused by Covid‐19, different countries have made some decisions for dealing with this virus, one of which was quarantine. It was shown that a range of behavioral and emotional changes may exacerbate in children while staying more at home, and parents may then experience these positive or negative behavioral changes. The present study was conducted to examine the experiences of families with children with psychiatric disorders in a psychiatric outpatient clinic in Iran. Method The phenomenological method, which is a qualitative approach, was used in this study. The population was the parents of children with psychiatric disorders referred to the pediatric psychiatric clinic of Imam Hossein Hospital. Sampling was purposeful, which continued until data saturation. Finally, the number of included participants reached 14. As well, the Colaizzi method was used for data analysis. Results The results of this study included 12 secondary codes and 10 tertiary codes, which were divided into three main thematic groups as follows: effective factors for improving behavior, effective factors for worsening behavior, and affective factors on creating a new behavior during quarantine. Conclusion In conclusion, quarantine, social restrictions, closure of schools, and online classes can affect the mental health status of children and adolescents in different ways, especially in children with a history of psychiatric disorders.

Tele-medicine and improvement of mental health problems in COVID-19 pandemic: A systematic review.

INTRODUCTION: Tele-medicine services have been developed in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, which disrupts mental health services. The present study investigates the effectiveness of telephone-delivered services for psychological disorders in the COVID-19 pandemic. METHODS: We searched PubMed/Medline, Embase and Cochrane Controlled Register of Trials for relevant clinical studies up to February 1, 2022. Following terms were used: "severe acute respiratory syndrome", "Coronavirus", "Coronavirus infection", "SARS-CoV-2", "COVID-19", "mental disorder", "mental health", "mental health program", "mental health service", "psychiatric service", "telemedicine", "Telehealth", "Tele-health", "Telecare", "Mobile health". RESULTS: Twelve relevant clinical articles were included in our study. Eight articles were parallel randomized controlled trials (RCTs), two were Quasi-experimental, and one was a multicenter retrospective cohort study. A total of 1900 adults (18 years old or above that) were included. Online telecommunication methods like online apps and videoconference were the most common interventions. The most prevalent measured outcome was levels of anxiety and depression among participants. Eleven out of 12 articles showed a significant association between telemedicine and mental health improvement. CONCLUSIONS: The included studies in the current systematic review reported the probable efficacy of telemedicine in improving mental health disorders during the COVID-19 pandemic. But it is not possible to determine the best telecommunication method for each mental disorder in different populations and the preference of patients is still face to face therapy. So RCTs in different populations with previous mental disorders or chronic diseases are required to investigate the further telemedicine's efficacy on managing mental problems.

Psychiatric Adverse Drug Reactions and Potential Anti-COVID-19 Drug Interactions with Psychotropic Medications.

Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) management in patients with predisposing psychiatric disorders would be challenging due to potential drug-drug interactions (PDDIs) and precipitation of their disease severity. Furthermore, COVID-19 itself might precipitate or induce unpredicted psychiatry and neuropsychiatry complications in these patients. In this literature review study, the psychological impacts of COVID-19 and major psychiatric adverse drug reactions (ADRs) of COVID-19 treatment options have been discussed. A detailed Table has been provided to assess potential drug-drug interactions of COVID-19 treatment options with psychotropic medications to avoid unwanted major drug-drug interactions. Finally, potential mechanisms of these major drug-drug interactions and possible management of them have been summarized. The most common type of major PDDIs is pharmacokinetics. Hydroxychloroquine/chloroquine and lopinavir/ritonavir were the most involved anti-COVID-19 agents in these major PDDIs.

Mental Health Status among Hospitalized Patients with COVID-19 in Iran.

Objective: The recent escalated numbers of subjected COVID-19 patients and mortality rates have alerted the general population and authorities to its effects not only on physical health but also on different aspects of the society such as mental health. This study assesses the general mental health and immediate psychological impacts in hospitalized patients with COVID-19. Method : In this cross-sectional study, 88 patients from two tertiary hospitals in Tehran agreed to complete the surveys. The Impact of Event Scale-Revised (IES-R) and 12 item General Health questionnaire (GHQ-12) were used to evaluate mental health and impact of disease. Epidemiological and sociodemographic information entailing underlying diseases was assess by a researcher-made questionnaire. Results: We found that the psychological impact of the current pandemic is mild to moderate. During the initial phase of the pandemic, the intellectual engagements, inducing post event stress is not yet entirely developed. However, patients had a moderate to high probability of psychiatric morbidity with 63.6% and 28.4%, respectively. Conclusion: The effect of such viral pandemic on mental health is inevitable. As we conducted the study in the dire times of the outbreak, patients showed a high probability of psychiatric morbidity. On the other hand, since the study was done in the initial phase of the epidemic, we detected mild effects of the epidemic on PTSD in COVID-19 patients. Furthermore, several psychosocial protective programs should be implicated to address the mental complications.

Mental Health Status among Healthcare Workers during COVID-19 Pandemic.

Objective: COVID-19, which is an international concern by far, had fundamental impacts on mental health of medical staff. Healthcare workers are the high-risk group to endure the emotional outcomes brought about by the outbreak. This study assesses the mental consequences of healthcare workers during the acute phase of COVID-19 pandemic in Tehran. Method : We conducted a cross-sectional study on healthcare workers from two tertiary referral hospitals in Tehran province. A total of 222 of the staff participated in the study. Our questionnaires comprised Impact of Event Scale-Revised (IES-R) and 12-item General Health Questionnaire (GHQ-12), which were handed to participants to obtain data on their general mental problems in addition to the psychological impacts of the evolving virus on this particular group. Epidemiologic and sociodemographic information of participants, level of perceiving exposure to disease, and underlying diseases of each of them were gathered during the recruitment period. Results: Results showed high probabilities (98.2%) in mental disorders among healthcare workers. Since our study was done during the initial phase of the pandemic, development of mental issues due to the newly emerged infectious virus was expected. However, we recorded mild (41.4%) to moderate (31.5%) impact of this novel virus. The possibility of having mental problems was much higher in females, assistant nurses, individuals with lower education, and those who provided care for COVID-19 patients. Conclusion: COVID-19 has brought about increased distress among healthcare workers. Noticeably, the forefront group in combating this virus bear the most emotional complications. Thus, efforts should be taken into practice to provide proper psychological support for this vulnerable group.