The prevalence of behavioral problems among school-aged children in home quarantine during the COVID-19 pandemic in china.
J Affect Disord
; 279: 412-416, 2021 01 15.
Article
in English
| MEDLINE | ID: covidwho-838368
ABSTRACT
BACKGROUND:
To prevent spreading of the COVID-19 infection, many countries have implemented a nationwide school closure. We aimed to assess the prevalence of behavioral problems in school-aged children during home confinement.METHODS:
We conducted an internet-based survey involving 1264 children (grades 2-6) and their parents from two primary schools between February 25 and March 8, 2020, in Hubei province, China. Behavioral problems were evaluated using the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ).RESULTS:
The prevalence of prosocial behaviors among children was 10.3%, followed by total difficulty (8.2%), conduct problems (7.0%), peer problems (6.6%), hyperactivity-inattention (6.3%) and emotional problems (4.7%). Compared with children who did not exercise, children with psychical activity had a lower hyperactivity-inattention risk (Odds Ratio (OR) 0.44 for 1-2 days/week; OR 0.56 for more than 2 days/week) and less prosocial behaviors problems (OR 0.65 for 1-2 days/week; OR 0.55 for more than 2 days/week). Children of parents with anxious symptoms were associated with increased risks of emotional symptoms and total difficulty (OR 5.64 and 3.78, respectively).LIMITATIONS:
We adopted self-report questionnaires and did not collect baseline information before COVID-19 outbreak. The potential self-selection bias inherent in the study should be noted.CONCLUSION:
The prevalence of behavioral problems among school-aged children varied from 4.7% to 10.3% in home quarantine during the COVID-19 outbreak. Taking physical exercise may be an efficient measure to reduce behavioral problems for school-aged children in home confinement.Keywords
Full text:
Available
Collection:
International databases
Database:
MEDLINE
Main subject:
Quarantine
/
Problem Behavior
/
COVID-19
/
Mental Disorders
Type of study:
Experimental Studies
/
Observational study
/
Prognostic study
/
Qualitative research
/
Randomized controlled trials
Limits:
Adolescent
/
Child
/
Female
/
Humans
/
Male
Country/Region as subject:
Asia
Language:
English
Journal:
J Affect Disord
Year:
2021
Document Type:
Article
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