Longitudinal impact of psychosocial status on children's mental health in the context of COVID-19 pandemic restrictions.

Emerging research suggests that the prevalence of child and adolescent mental health problems has increased considerably during the COVID-19 crisis. However, there have been few longitudinal studies on children's mental health issues according to their social determinants in this context, especially in Europe. Our aim was to investigate the association between family socioeconomic status (SES) and children' mental health during the period of school closure due to COVID-19. Longitudinal data came from 4575 children aged 8-9 years old in 2020 and participating in the ELFE population-based birth cohort that focuses on children's health, development and socialization. Parents completed the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ) when children were (a) 5 years of age and (b) 9 years of age, which corresponded to the period of school closure due to the COVID-19 pandemic in France. We retrieved data from the ELFE cohort collected on children from birth to age 5 years (birth, 1 year, 2 years, 3,5 years and 5 years). Socioeconomic status (SES) was measured based on information obtained when the child was 5 years old. Data were analyzed using multinomial logistic regression models. Children's elevated levels of symptoms of Attention-deficit/Hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) during the period of school closure were significantly associated with prior low family SES (aOR 1.26, 95% CI 1.08-1.48). Children's elevated symptoms of hyperactivity/inattention and of emotional symptoms were associated with decline in income during the COVID crisis (respectively, aOR 1.38, 95% CI 1.16-1.63 and aOR 1.23, 95% CI 1.01-1.51). Moreover, when testing interactions, a low prior SES was significantly associated with a higher risk of emotional symptoms aOR 1.54 (1.07-2.21), only for children whose families experienced a decline in income, while gender, parental separation and prior mental health difficulties were not associated. This study underlines the impact of the financial crisis related to the COVID-19 epidemic on children's mental health. Both pre-existing family SES before lockdown and more proximal financial difficulties during the COVID crisis were negatively associated with children's psychological difficulties during the period of school closure. The pandemic appears to exacerbate mental health problems in deprived children whose families suffer from financial difficulties.

Parents' depression and anxiety associated with hyperactivity-inattention and emotional symptoms in children during school closure due to COVID-19 in France.

Several risk factors of children's mental health issues have been identified during the pandemic of COronaVIrus Disease first appeared in 2019 (COVID-19). This study aims to fill the knowledge gap regarding the association between parents' and children's mental health issues during the COVID-19 school closure in France. We conducted a cross-sectional analysis of data collected in the SAPRIS-ELFE study during the COVID-19 pandemic in France. Using multinomial logistic regressions, we estimated associations between parents' and children's mental health issues. Symptoms of anxiety were assessed by the General Anxiety Disorder-7 (GAD-7) and depression by the Patient Health Questionnaire-9 (PHQ-9) for the parents. Hyperactivity/inattention and emotional symptoms in children were assessed by the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ). The sample included 3496 children aged 8 to 9 years, of whom 50.0% were girls. During the school closure, 7.1% of responding parents had moderate to severe levels of anxiety and 6.7% had moderate to severe levels of depression. A total of 11.8% of the children had an abnormal hyperactivity/inattention score and 6.6% had an abnormal emotional symptoms score. In multivariate regression models, parental moderate to severe level of anxiety and moderate to severe level of depression were associated with abnormal hyperactivity-inattention score (adjusted Odds Ratio (aOR) 3.31; 95% Confidence Interval (CI) 2.33-4.70 and aOR 4.65; 95% CI 3.27-6.59, respectively) and abnormal emotional symptoms score in children (aOR 3.58; 95% CI 2.33-5.49 and aOR 3.78; 95 CI 2.47-5.78 respectively). Children whose parents have symptoms of anxiety and/or depression have an increased likelihood of symptoms of hyperactivity/inattention and emotional symptoms during school closures in France due to COVID-19. Our findings suggest that public health initiatives should target parents and children to limit the impact of such crises on their mental health issues.

Emotional and attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder symptoms of preterm vs. full-term children during COVID-19 pandemic restrictions.

BACKGROUND: Preterm children are at higher risk of developing mental health problems than full-term children. Deterioration of children's mental health was observed during COVID-19 pandemic restrictive measures. Our study compared emotional and attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) symptoms during school closure between preterm and full-term children. METHODS: Data from two French birth cohorts-ELFE and EPIPAGE-2-were used. In 2011, infants born ≥22 weeks' gestation were recruited. Parents completed the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire when the children were 9 years old and experiencing school closure. Multivariate multinomial logistic regression models were used. RESULTS: Subjects included 4164 full-term and 1119 preterm children. In univariate analyses, compared to full-term children: extremely and very preterm children more frequently had abnormal and borderline ADHD scores (odds ratio [OR] 1.86, 95% confidence interval [CI] 1.50-2.30, OR 1.42, 95% CI 1.08-1.85, respectively) and abnormal emotional scores (OR 1.86, 95% CI 1.43-2.40); moderate to late preterm children more often had abnormal ADHD scores (OR 1.33, 95% CI 1.01-1.78). The associations did not remain when previous symptoms at 5 years old were considered. CONCLUSIONS: School closure during lockdown did not appear to increase the risk of mental health problems in preterm compared to full-term children. IMPACT STATEMENT: Preterm children are at higher risk of developing mental health problems than full-term children. Deterioration in children's mental health was observed during COVID-19 pandemic restrictions. However, whether preterm children were a particularly vulnerable subgroup during school closure is unclear. In univariate analyses, extremely and very preterm children more often had abnormal and borderline ADHD symptoms and abnormal emotional symptom scores than full-term children. The associations did not remain significantly associated when previous symptoms were considered. Preterm compared to full-term children more often suffer from ADHD and emotional symptoms, but school closure during lockdown did not appear to increase this risk.

Children's experience of the first lockdown in France

During the first COVID-19 lockdown in France in the spring of 2020, schools were closed and all activities outside the home were suspended. Primary school children who found themselves confined to their homes adapted quite well to the change. They continued with their schoolwork and took advantage of their freedom to spend more time on daily activities. But for parents with low socio-economic status, the lockdown placed strain on family relationships, increased the children's screen time, disrupted their sleep and their psychological well-being, and made schoolwork more problematic. For children and adults alike, the lockdown produced an increase in inequalities likely to worsen over the medium term.