Introduction: Children and adolescents have been shown to
manifest COVID-19 differently than adults, frequently displaying less
severe symptoms or appearing asymptomatic as well as presenting lower
risk of death. However, the effects of the pandemic, declared in March
2020, stem beyond the immediate infectious risk for this population. Our
aim was to conduct a scoping review of the scientific literature and
produce an online Interactive Evidence Map (IEM) highlighting the trends
and available evidence around the unintended effects of the COVID-19
pandemic on children’s and adolescents’ mental, psychosocial and
physical health during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Methods: In April 2021 a research librarian developed a broad
search using key terms associated with “coronavirus” and “children”.
The search was run monthly in Medline, PsycInfo, CENTRAL and the
Cochrane COVID‐19 Study Register. Using pre-defined eligibility
criteria, each month studies were screened by one reviewer, with all
exclusions verified by a second reviewer. Eligible studies relating to
the unintended mental, psychosocial and physical health consequences of
the COVID-19 pandemic were categorized by focus, and data were extracted
relating to study design, population characteristics (e.g., age, gender,
race), and outcomes examined. Categorized studies and corresponding data
were then uploaded into EPPI-Reviewer and transferred to EPPI-Mapper for
visualization.
Results: From May 1st 2021 through April 30th 2022, over 14,500
citations were screened; 1,445 were specifically related to the mental,
psychosocial and physical health consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic
on children and adolescents. Ultimately, 826 studies were included in
this scoping review and IEM. The majority of studies were
cross-sectional (n=528; 64%) and reported on mental health outcomes,
particularly anxiety (n=309; 37%) and depression (n=294; 36%).
Psychosocial outcomes related to lockdowns such as loneliness (n=120;
15%) and impact on adolescent relationships with others (n=149; 18%)
were also reported. Fewer studies examined the physical consequences of
the pandemic, but those that did mostly focused on child abuse (n=73;
9%).
Conclusion: This scoping review used an innovative
visualization tool to chart peer-reviewed articles and identify trends
related to the unintended effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on the
mental, psychosocial, and physical health consequences of the pandemic
experienced by children and adolescents. The literature we mapped had a
strong focus on mental health outcomes such as anxiety and depression.
Children and adolescents have been significantly affected by the
pandemic and future resources need to be directed towards ongoing mental
health supports and management for this unique and vulnerable
population.