Admissions of Children and Adolescents With Deliberate Self-harm to Intensive Care During the SARS-CoV-2 Outbreak in Australia

Abstract

IMPORTANCEIdentification of potential indirect outcomes associated with the COVID-19 pandemic in the pediatric population may be essential for understanding the challenges of the current global public health crisis for children and adolescents. OBJECTIVE To investigate whether the SARS-CoV-2 outbreak and subsequent effective public health measures in Australia were associated with an increase in admissions to intensive care units (ICUs) of children and adolescents with deliberate self-harm (DSH). DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTS This national, multicenter cohort study was conducted using the Australian data subset of the binational Australian and New Zealand Paediatric Intensive Care registry, a collaborative containing more than 200 000 medical records with continuous contributions from all 8 Australian specialist, university-affiliated pediatric ICUs, along with 1 combined neonatal-pediatric ICU and 14 general (adult) ICUs in Australia. The study period

Hospitalizations Associated With Mental Health Conditions Among Adolescents in the US and France During the COVID-19 Pandemic

“…Our results are consistent with prior studies, highlighting the potential association of pandemic-related disruptions with adolescent social, emotional, and behavioral well-being . The greater illness burden observed among female adolescents is also in line with findings reported in other analyses .…”

“…Our results are consistent with prior studies, highlighting the potential association of pandemicrelated disruptions with adolescent social, emotional, and behavioral well-being. 1,[21][22][23][24] The greater illness burden observed among female adolescents is also in line with findings reported in other analyses. 1,8,24 These patterns have been documented primarily within individual countries and especially in single-center studies; few robust data exist across multicenter and international settings.…”

Suicide spectrum among young people during the COVID-19 pandemic: A systematic review and meta-analysis

“… 115 Similar temporal trends have been already seen in Australia, UK and Germany. 116 , 117 , 118 , 119 …”

Comparison of paediatric emergency department visits for attempted suicide, self-harm, and suicidal ideation before and during the COVID-19 pandemic: a systematic review and meta-analysis

“…Some authors report decreases in severe mental distress, 10 , 11 , 12 or no clear change, 13 , 14 , 15 , 16 whereas others report increases among children and adolescents, especially adolescent girls. 17 , 18 , 19 , 20 Changes in emergency department presentations for severe mental distress have also evolved during the pandemic; initial reports suggested a decline from March to May, 2020, whereas increases were documented, especially among girls, in June to December, 2020. 21 These discrepancies have fuelled confusion and have probably contributed to delays in public health and policy responses to address paediatric mental distress in the aftermath of the pandemic.…”