Changes in the mental health in the children’s and adolescent population in Germany during the COVID-19 pandemic – Results of a rapid review

Schlack, Robert; Neuperdt, Laura; Junker, Stephan; Eicher, Sophie; Hölling, Heike; Thom, Julia; Ravens‐Sieberer, Ulrike; Beyer, Anja

doi:10.25646/10761

Cited by 9 publications

(9 citation statements)

References 38 publications

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“…Several studies showed that the prevalence of low HRQoL significantly increased in 2020 ( 7 , 12–15 ), continued to be low in winter 2020 ( 9 ) and spring 2021 ( 16 ) and only improved in autumn 2021 ( 13 ). Despite this development, some children benefited from more free time and increased time with family during the lockdown in April 2020 ( 12 ).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Three years into the pandemic: results of the longitudinal German COPSY study on youth mental health and health-related quality of life

Ravens‐Sieberer

Napp

Kaman

et al. 2023

Front. Public Health

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PurposeFor the past three years, the German longitudinal COPSY (COVID-19 and PSYchological Health) study has monitored changes in health-related quality of life (HRQoL) and the mental health of children and adolescents during the COVID-19 pandemic.MethodsA nationwide, population-based survey was conducted in May–June 2020 (W1), December 2020–January 2021 (W2), September–October 2021 (W3), February 2022 (W4), and September–October 2022 (W5). In total, n = 2,471 children and adolescents aged 7–17 years (n = 1,673 aged 11–17 years with self-reports) were assessed using internationally established and validated measures of HRQoL (KIDSCREEN-10), mental health problems (SDQ), anxiety (SCARED), depressive symptoms (CES-DC, PHQ-2), psychosomatic complaints (HBSC-SCL), and fear about the future (DFS-K). Findings were compared to prepandemic population-based data.ResultsWhile the prevalence of low HRQoL increased from 15% prepandemic to 48% at W2, it improved to 27% at W5. Similarly, overall mental health problems rose from 18% prepandemic to W1 through W2 (30–31%), and since then slowly declined (W3: 27%, W4: 29%, W5: 23%). Anxiety doubled from 15% prepandemic to 30% in W2 and declined to 25% (W5) since then. Depressive symptoms increased from 15%/10% (CES-DC/PHQ-2) prepandemic to 24%/15% in W2, and slowly decreased to 14%/9% in W5. Psychosomatic complaints are across all waves still on the rise. 32–44% of the youth expressed fears related to other current crises.ConclusionMental health of the youth improved in year 3 of the pandemic, but is still lower than before the pandemic.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Three years into the pandemic: results of the longitudinal German COPSY study on youth mental health and health-related quality of life

Ravens‐Sieberer

Napp

Kaman

et al. 2023

Front. Public Health

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“…The findings also refine existing evidence by indicating that physical complaints (e.g., headache, back pain) become more apparent as the pandemic progresses than in the early days of the pandemic. The Robert Koch Institute (RKI), one of the most important bodies for the safeguarding of public health in Germany, claims that routinely conducted trend and cohort studies would be desirable to survey the mental health of young people during the course of the pandemic and beyond [20]. Therefore, the study findings are highly relevant to public health and policy in Germany as implementation of infection control measures in Germany already takes children's mental health into account.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…A need for action was identified since a significant increase in mental distress and symptoms during the pandemic was observed, knowing that the prevalence of mental health problems in children and adolescents had declined in times before the pandemic. The RKI also identified a lack of studies monitoring the mental health of youths in Germany during the pandemic and beyond [20]. Therefore, we wanted to add to the existing body of knowledge and refine existing results with findings from recently collected data.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Mental Health and Physical Complaints of German Children and Adolescents before and during the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Repeated Cross-Sectional Study

Hansen

Galimov

Unger

et al. 2023

IJERPH

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The potential impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on young people’s mental and physical health is of increasing concern. We examined the levels of internalizing and externalizing problem behavior and physical complaints before and during the COVID-19 pandemic in Germany. Data came from a repeated cross-sectional study on child and youth health in schools in Germany. Assessments took place from November to February each year. Two data collections were conducted before the COVID-19 pandemic in 2018–2019 and in 2019–2020. Collections during the pandemic took place in 2020–2021 and 2021–2022. A total of 63,249 data observations were included in the analyses. Multilevel analyses were used to examine temporal trends in mean emotional problems (e.g., often unhappy, downhearted), hyperactivity-inattention (e.g., constantly fidgeting or squirming), conduct problems (e.g., fights with other children), and physical complaints. Models were adjusted for age, gender, school type, socioeconomic status, and sensation seeking. During the COVID-19 pandemic, children and adolescents in Germany experienced an increase in emotional problems from the pre-pandemic cohort 2019–2020 to the pandemic cohort 2021–2022 (β = 0.56, 95% CI (0.51–0.62)) and, over the course of the pandemic, reported elevated levels of physical complaints (β = 0.19, 95% CI (0.16–0.21)). Findings of increased emotional problems and physical complaints after the two years of the pandemic support the ongoing demand for low-threshold health promotion and prevention and the need for further monitoring of young people’s health in Germany.

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“…A systematic review reported a lockdown-associated increase in anxiety and depressive symptoms in children and adolescents and an increase in sleep disorders; as risk factors, a priori mental illness and high media exposure were identified [ 16 ]. Increased stress levels are associated with respective containment measures [ 15 ].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Effectiveness of Online and Remote Interventions for Mental Health in Children, Adolescents, and Young Adults After the Onset of the COVID-19 Pandemic: Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

Fischer-Grote,

Fössing,

Aigner

et al. 2024

JMIR Ment Health

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Background The prevalence of mental illness increased in children, adolescents, and young adults during the COVID-19 pandemic, while at the same time, access to treatment facilities has been restricted, resulting in a need for the quick implementation of remote or online interventions. Objective This study aimed to give an overview of randomized controlled studies examining remote or online interventions for mental health in children, adolescents, and young adults and to explore the overall effectiveness of these interventions regarding different symptoms. Methods A systematic literature search was conducted according to PRISMA (Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analysis) guidelines using PubMed, PsycInfo, Psyndex, Embase, and Google Scholar. A meta-analysis was conducted using a random effects model to calculate overall effect sizes for interventions using standardized mean differences (SMDs) for postintervention scores. Results We identified 17 articles with 8732 participants in the final sample, and 13 were included in the quantitative analysis. The studies examined different digital interventions for several outcomes, showing better outcomes than the control in some studies. Meta-analyses revealed significant medium overall effects for anxiety (SMD=0.44, 95% CI 0.20 to 0.67) and social functioning (SMD=0.42, 95% CI –0.68 to –0.17) and a large significant effect for depression (SMD=1.31, 95% CI 0.34 to 2.95). In contrast, no significant overall treatment effects for well-being, psychological distress, disordered eating, and COVID-19–related symptoms were found. Conclusions The qualitative and quantitative analyses of the included studies show promising results regarding the effectiveness of online interventions, especially for symptoms of anxiety and depression and for training of social functioning. However, the effectiveness needs to be further investigated for other groups of symptoms in the future. All in all, more research with high-quality studies is required.

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Changes in the mental health in the children’s and adolescent population in Germany during the COVID-19 pandemic – Results of a rapid review

Cited by 9 publications

References 38 publications

Three years into the pandemic: results of the longitudinal German COPSY study on youth mental health and health-related quality of life

Three years into the pandemic: results of the longitudinal German COPSY study on youth mental health and health-related quality of life

Mental Health and Physical Complaints of German Children and Adolescents before and during the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Repeated Cross-Sectional Study

Effectiveness of Online and Remote Interventions for Mental Health in Children, Adolescents, and Young Adults After the Onset of the COVID-19 Pandemic: Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

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