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Depression and anxiety in hospitalized children with epilepsy during COVID-19 pandemic: Preliminary findings of a cross-sectional study

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  13 August 2021

C. Correale ,
I. Tondo ,
C. Falamesca ,
T. Grimaldi Capitello ,
F. Vigevano ,
N. Specchio  and
S. Cappelletti
C. Correale*
Affiliation:
Clinical Psychology, Bambino Gesù Children Hospital, Rome, Italy
I. Tondo
Affiliation:
Clinical Psychology, Bambino Gesù Children Hospital, Rome, Italy
C. Falamesca
Affiliation:
Clinical Psychology, Bambino Gesù Children Hospital, Rome, Italy
T. Grimaldi Capitello
Affiliation:
Clinical Psychology, Bambino Gesù Children Hospital, Rome, Italy
F. Vigevano
Affiliation:
Neurological Sciences, Bambino Gesù Children Hospital, Rome, Italy
N. Specchio
Affiliation:
Neurological Sciences, Bambino Gesù Children Hospital, Rome, Italy
S. Cappelletti
Affiliation:
Clinical Psychology, Bambino Gesù Children Hospital, Rome, Italy
*
*Corresponding author.

Abstract

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Introduction

Anxious-depressive disorders are common among children with epilepsy. A recent Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis (Scott et al., 2020) reported that the overall pooled prevalence of anxiety disorders is 18.9% while of depressive disorders is 13.5%. COVID-19 pandemic has centralized the attention of governors and careers on the health emergency. As a result, the trajectory of the psychological care needs of this at risk population may have been neglected.

Objectives

The aim of the study was to assess the prevalence rate of depressive and anxiety symptoms among children with epilepsy during COVID-19 pandemic. Children were hospitalized in- and out-patients under a neurological and psychological follow up program in an Italian Children Hospital.

Methods

We conducted a cross-sectional study among 38 hospitalized children and adolescents with epilepsy (21F; 17M, mean age: 14,5; range: 11-18) during COVID-19 pandemic. We performed face-to face interviews and assessed depressive and anxiety symptoms with the Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-9) and the Generalized Anxiety Disorders (GAD-7) questionnaire during scheduled follow up checks.

Results

Preliminary results showed a rate of mild-to-severe anxious depressive symptoms by 49.9% and 60.5% respectively. In detail: 21.1% mild, 15.7% moderate and 13.1% of severe anxiety, meanwhile 23.7% mild, 26.3% moderate and 10.5% of severe depression. The prevalence of comorbid depressive and anxiety symptoms was 39.5% among the entire sample.

Conclusions

Depressive and anxiety rates among hospitalized children with epilepsy during COVID-19 outbreak are very high. Pediatric services should deserve special attention to those patients’ mental health. Regular screening protocols and empowerment interventions in Hospital should be promoted.

Disclosure

No significant relationships.

Keywords

COVID-19EpilepsyAnxietyDepression
Type
Abstract
Information
European Psychiatry , Volume 64 , Special Issue S1: Abstracts of the 29th European Congress of Psychiatry , April 2021 , pp. S670 - S671
Creative Commons
Creative Common License - CCCreative Common License - BY
This is an Open Access article, distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution licence (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted re-use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
Copyright
© The Author(s), 2021. Published by Cambridge University Press on behalf of the European Psychiatric Association
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