Review: Mental health impacts of the COVID‐19 pandemic on children and youth – a systematic review

🤖 Plain-English Summary

BACKGROUND: The COVID-19 pandemic has posed an unprecedented threat to global mental health. Physical exercise, access to entertainment, positive familial relationships, and social support were associated with better mental health outcomes.

🔑 Key Findings

• Children and adolescents may be more susceptible to mental health impacts related to their vulnerable developmental stage, fear of infection, home confinement, suspension of regular school and extracurricular activities, physical distancing mandates, and larger scale threats such as global financial recessions and associated impacts.
• Our objective was to review existing evidence of the COVID-19 pandemic's global impact on the mental health of children and adolescents <19 years of age and to identify personal and contextual factors that may enhance risk or confer protection in relation to mental health outcomes.
• METHODS: We conducted a search of peer-reviewed and preprint research published in English from January 1, 2020, to February 22, 2021.

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