ABSTRACT
BACKGROUND: Worldwide national surveys show a rising mental health burden among children and adolescents (C&A) during COVID-19. The objective of the current study is to verify the expected rise in visits to psychiatric outpatient clinics of C&A, especially of new patients. METHODS: a cross-sectional study focusing on visits as recorded in electronic medical records of eight heterogeneous C&A psychiatric outpatient clinics. The assessment was based on visits held from March to December of 2019 (before the pandemic) in comparison to visits held in 2020 (during the pandemic). RESULTS: The number of visits was similar for both periods. However, in 2020, 17% of the visits used telepsychiatry (N = 9885). Excluding telepsychiatry reveals a monthly decrease in traditional in-person activities between 2020 and 2019 (691.6 ± 370.8 in 2020 vs. 809.1 ± 422.8 in 2019, mean difference = -117.5, t (69) = -4.07, p = 0.0002, Cohen's d = -0.30). Acceptation of new patients declined during 2020, compared to 2019 (50.0 ± 38.2 in 2020 vs. 62.8 ± 42.9 in 2019; Z = -3.12, p = 0.002, r = 0.44). Telepsychiatry was not used for new patients. CONCLUSIONS: The activity of C&A psychiatric outpatient clinics did not rise but was guarded due to the use of telepsychiatry. The decline in visits of new patients was explained by the lack of use of telepsychiatry for these patients. This calls for expanding the use of telepsychiatry, especially for new patients.
ABSTRACT
The objective of this study was to assess the response of anxiety and depression symptoms to methylphenidate (MPH) treatment in patients with Asperger syndrome (AS) combined with attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). A group of 12 patients with AS/ADHD, aged 8-18 years, received 12 weeks of MPH treatment. The severities of ADHD, anxiety, and depression symptoms were assessed by means of the ADHD Rating Scale (ADHD-RS), Screen for Child Anxiety Related Emotional Disorders, and the Children's Depression Inventory. The severity of ADHD and depression symptoms was reduced significantly (P<0.0003 and P=0.046, respectively). No improvement in total anxiety symptoms was found, but a significant reduction was obtained in the school-related subscale of the Screen for Child Anxiety Related Emotional Disorders (P=0.0054). A positive correlation was found between the reductions in ADHD-RS and Children's Depression Inventory scores (r=0.59, P=0.039). MPH treatment may be safe, tolerable, and effective in alleviating depression and school-related anxiety symptoms in patients with AS and ADHD.
