The Impact of The Covid-19 Pandemic on Adolescent Neuropsychiatric Admissions for Anorexic Eating Disorders Throughout the 2013-2022 Decade
Main Article Content
Abstract
Objective: The purpose of this study is to evaluate the impact that Covid-19 pandemic and the related restrictive measures have had on minors diagnosed with eating disorders (EDs), in particular Anorexia nervosa (AN) and restrictive unspecified EDs, both on an epidemiological and on a clinical level.
Methods: We considered AN and restrictive unspecified EDs cases treated in the years 2013-2022 in Padua Hospital’s Child Neuropsychiatry ward, the 97 patients were then divided into two groups, one dated before the pandemic’s start and one dated after. We then analyzed the differences using data collected from medical records and from the Youth Self Report (YSR) tests performed.
Results: Our study confirms a large increase in the number of cases of AN and restrictive EDs during the pandemic/post-pandemic period, the clinical characteristics of these cases instead seem substantially unchanged compared to the pre-pandemic ones.
Conclusions: The pandemic has led to a large increase in the number of these EDs, underlining the need for attention to the topic and for new measures aimed at primary and secondary prevention.
Keywords:
Covid-19, Anorexia Nervosa, Pandemic, Adolescents, Eating Disorders
Article Details
How to Cite
ALESSIA, Raffagnato et al.
The Impact of The Covid-19 Pandemic on Adolescent Neuropsychiatric Admissions for Anorexic Eating Disorders Throughout the 2013-2022 Decade.
Medical Research Archives, [S.l.], v. 12, n. 9, sep. 2024.
ISSN 2375-1924.
Available at: <https://esmed.org/MRA/mra/article/view/5833>. Date accessed: 22 dec. 2024.
doi: https://doi.org/10.18103/mra.v12i9.5833.
Section
Research Articles
The Medical Research Archives grants authors the right to publish and reproduce the unrevised contribution in whole or in part at any time and in any form for any scholarly non-commercial purpose with the condition that all publications of the contribution include a full citation to the journal as published by the Medical Research Archives.
References
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20) Pruccoli J, De Rosa M, Chiasso L, Perrone A, Parmeggiani A. The use of TikTok among children and adolescents with Eating Disorders: experience in a third-level public Italian center during the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic. Ital J Pediatr. 2022;48(1):138. Published 2022 Jul 30. doi:10.1186/s13052-022-01308-4
21) Vaccaro CM, Guarino G, Conte D, Ferrara E, Ragione LD, Bracale R. Social networks and eating disorders during the Covid-19 pandemic. Open Med (Wars). 2021;16(1):1170-1174. Published 2021 Aug 24. doi:10.1515/med-2021-0291
22) Morris AM, Katzman DK. The impact of the media on eating disorders in children and adolescents. Paediatr Child Health. 2003;8(5):287-289. doi:10.1093/pch/8.5.287
23) Datta N, Van Wye E, Citron K, Matheson B, Lock JD. The COVID-19 pandemic and youth with anorexia nervosa: A retrospective comparative cohort design. Int J Eat Disord. 2023;56(1):263-268. doi:10.1002/eat.23817
24) Muth L, Leven KH, Moll G, Kratz O, Horndasch S. Effects of the COVID-19 Restrictions on Eating Behaviour and Eating Disorder Symptomology in Female Adolescents. Int J Environ Res Public Health. 2022;19(14):8480. Published 2022 Jul 11. doi:10.3390/ijerph19148480
2) Winkler LA. Funen Anorexia Nervosa Study - a follow-up study on outcome, mortality, quality of life and body composition. Dan Med J. 2017;64(6):B5380.
3) Kamble S, Joshi A, Kamble R, Kumari S. Influence of COVID-19 Pandemic on Psychological Status: An Elaborate Review. Cureus. 2022;14(10):e29820. Published 2022 Oct 1. doi:10.7759/cureus.29820
4) J Devoe D, Han A, Anderson A, et al. The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on eating disorders: A systematic review. Int J Eat Disord. 2023;56(1):5-25. doi:10.1002/eat.23704
5) Otto AK, Jary JM, Sturza J, et al. Medical Admissions Among Adolescents With Eating Disorders During the COVID-19 Pandemic [published correction appears in Pediatrics. 2022 Jan 1;149(1):e2021054921. doi: 10.1542/peds.2021-054921]. Pediatrics. 2021;148(4):e2021052201. doi:10.1542/peds.2021-052201
6) Gilsbach S, Plana MT, Castro-Fornieles J, et al. Increase in admission rates and symptom severity of childhood and adolescent anorexia nervosa in Europe during the COVID-19 pandemic: data from specialized eating disorder units in different European countries. Child Adolesc Psychiatry Ment Health. 2022;16(1):46. Published 2022 Jun 20. doi:10.1186/s13034-022-00482-x
7) Chauvet-Gelinier JC, Roussot A, Vergès B, Petit JM, Jollant F, Quantin C. Hospitalizations for Anorexia Nervosa during the COVID-19 Pandemic in France: A Nationwide Population-Based Study. J Clin Med. 2022;11(16):4787. Published 2022 Aug 16. doi:10.3390/jcm11164787
8) Goldberg L, Ziv A, Vardi Y, et al. The effect of COVID-19 pandemic on hospitalizations and disease characteristics of adolescents with anorexia nervosa. Eur J Pediatr. 2022;181(4):1767-1771. doi:10.1007/s00431-021-04350-2
9) Raffagnato A, Miscioscia M, Bruni G, et al. The impact of the two-year COVID-19 pandemic on hospital admission and readmissions of children and adolescents because of mental health problems. Front Public Health. 2023;11:1152876. Published 2023 Oct 19. doi:10.3389/fpubh.2023.1152876
10) Serur Y, Dikstein H, Shilton T, et al. The emotional-behavioral state of Israeli adolescent and young adult females with anorexia nervosa during the COVID19 pandemic. J Eat Disord. 2022;10(1):145. Published 2022 Oct 8. doi:10.1186/s40337-022-00668-w
11) Jarvers I, Ecker A, Schleicher D, Kandsperger S, Otto A, Brunner R. Anorexia nervosa during COVID-19: loss of personal control and alexithymia as important contributors to symptomatology in adolescent girls. J Eat Disord. 2023;11(1):180. Published 2023 Oct 12. doi:10.1186/s40337-023-00905-w
12) Wong JWS, Skeldon S, Gill E, et al. The increase in medical admissions with anorexia nervosa during the COVID-19 pandemic in Western Australia. Int J Eat Disord. 2023;56(8):1661-1666. doi:10.1002/eat.23977
13) Spina G, Roversi M, Marchili MR, et al. Psychiatric comorbidities and dehydration are more common in children admitted to the emergency department for eating disorders in the COVID-19 era. Eat Weight Disord. 2022;27(7):2473-2480. doi:10.1007/s40519-022-01386-7
14) Achenbach, T.M.; Rescorla, L. Manual for the ASEBA Preschool Forms & Profiles: An Integrated System of Multi-Informant Assessment; Manual for the ASEBA preschool forms and profiles; ASEBA: Burlington, VT, USA, 2001.
15) Frigerio, A.; Cattaneo, C.; Cataldo, M.; Schiatti, A.; Molteni, M.; Battaglia, M. Behavioral and Emotional Problems Among Italian Children and Adolescents Aged 4 to 18 Years as Reported by Parents and Teachers. Eur. J. Psychol. Assess. 2004, 20, 124–133.
16) Frigerio, A.; Vanzin, L.; Pastore, V.; Nobile, M.; Giorda, R.; Marino, C.; Molteni, M.; Rucci, P.; Ammaniti, M.; Lucarelli, L.; et al. The Italian Preadolescent Mental Health Project (PrISMA): Rationale and Methods. Int. J. Methods Psychiatr. Res. 2006, 15, 22–35.
17) https://www.jamovi.org
18) Graell M, Morón-Nozaleda MG, Camarneiro R, et al. Children and adolescents with eating disorders during COVID-19 confinement: Difficulties and future challenges. Eur Eat Disord Rev. 2020;28(6):864-870. doi:10.1002/erv.2763
19) Lonergan AR, Bussey K, Fardouly J, et al. Protect me from my selfie: Examining the association between photo-based social media behaviors and self-reported eating disorders in adolescence. Int J Eat Disord. 2020;53(5):485-496. doi:10.1002/eat.23256
20) Pruccoli J, De Rosa M, Chiasso L, Perrone A, Parmeggiani A. The use of TikTok among children and adolescents with Eating Disorders: experience in a third-level public Italian center during the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic. Ital J Pediatr. 2022;48(1):138. Published 2022 Jul 30. doi:10.1186/s13052-022-01308-4
21) Vaccaro CM, Guarino G, Conte D, Ferrara E, Ragione LD, Bracale R. Social networks and eating disorders during the Covid-19 pandemic. Open Med (Wars). 2021;16(1):1170-1174. Published 2021 Aug 24. doi:10.1515/med-2021-0291
22) Morris AM, Katzman DK. The impact of the media on eating disorders in children and adolescents. Paediatr Child Health. 2003;8(5):287-289. doi:10.1093/pch/8.5.287
23) Datta N, Van Wye E, Citron K, Matheson B, Lock JD. The COVID-19 pandemic and youth with anorexia nervosa: A retrospective comparative cohort design. Int J Eat Disord. 2023;56(1):263-268. doi:10.1002/eat.23817
24) Muth L, Leven KH, Moll G, Kratz O, Horndasch S. Effects of the COVID-19 Restrictions on Eating Behaviour and Eating Disorder Symptomology in Female Adolescents. Int J Environ Res Public Health. 2022;19(14):8480. Published 2022 Jul 11. doi:10.3390/ijerph19148480