Suanny Pers Cavalcanti, George Cartro, Italo Wanderson de Moura Gabriel, Nadia Nara Rolim Lima, Thania Maria Rodrigues Figueiredo, Thales Bezerra de Alcantara, Renato Bruno Holanda Nascimento, Modesto Leite Rolim Neto* and Ricardo Riyoiti Uchida
Objective: To summarize the most relevant data from a systematic review on the impact of COVID-19 on children and adolescents, particularly analyzing its psychiatric effects.
Method: We conducted a systematic review using the PRISMA protocol. We included experimental studies (randomized pooled or individually and non-randomized controlled trials), observational studies with a group of internal comparison qualitative studies and cohort studies (case-control, retrospective and prospective) in the period from 2021 to 2022.
Results: The search identified 325 articles; we removed 125 duplicates. We selected 200 manuscripts, chosen by title and selected abstracts. We excluded 50 records after screening titles and abstracts, as they did not meet the inclusion criteria. We retrieved 150 records selected for a full reading. We excluded 90 text articles and we selected 24 records for the (n) final.
Limitations: Due to the short period of data collection, from 2021 to 2022, there is a possibility of lack of relevant studies related to the mental health care of children and adolescents. In addition, there is the possibility of publication bias, such as only significant findings being published.
Conclusion: The impact of COVID-19 on the mental health of children and adolescents is of great concern to child and youth psychiatry. Situations such as fear, anxiety, panic, depression, sleep and appetite disorders, as well as impairment in social interactions caused by psychic stress, are punctual markers of pain and psychic suffering, which have increasing impacts on the mental health panorama of children and adolescents globally, particularly in vulnerable and socially at risk populations.
Published Date: 2022-07-12; Received Date: 2022-06-14
