Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic on Mental Health Service Utilization in Children and Adolescents (MENTALPED)

Mental health consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic may be vast and may potentially overwhelm the mental health system in a long-lasting manner. Evaluating the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on mental health in vulnerable groups such as children and adolescents has become an immediate priority. The aim of this study is to evaluate the impact of COVID-19 pandemic on use of mental health resources namely 1) prescriptions of psychotropic medications and 2) mental health-related outpatient visits, hospitalizations and emergency department visits in children and adolescents in France. Secondary aim is to evaluate the impact of the pandemic on episodes of fatal and non-fatal self-harm episodes in the same population. This will be a population-based cohort study using data from healthcare claims, administrative medical and outpatient drug dispensation databases in France between January 1, 2016 and June 1, 2021. Findings will inform on the risk of upcoming outbreaks of mental disorders that can result in significant morbidity and mortality and guide timely targeted actions to improve mental health outcomes and wellbeing in the youngest.

Study Overview

• Status: Completed
• Conditions: Mental Disorder, Child
• Intervention / Treatment: Other: national population-based study

Detailed Description

Mental health consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic may be vast and may potentially overwhelm the mental health system in a long-lasting manner. Evaluating the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on mental health in vulnerable groups such as children and adolescents has become an immediate priority. The aim of this study is to evaluate the impact of COVID-19 pandemic on use of mental health resources namely 1) prescriptions of psychotropic medications and 2) mental health-related outpatient visits, hospitalizations and emergency department visits in children and adolescents in France. Secondary aim is to evaluate the impact of the pandemic on episodes of fatal and non-fatal self-harm episodes in the same population. This will be a population-based cohort study using data from healthcare claims, administrative medical and outpatient drug dispensation databases in France between January 1, 2016 and June 1, 2021. Findings will inform on the risk of upcoming outbreaks of mental disorders that can result in significant morbidity and mortality and guide timely targeted actions to improve mental health outcomes and wellbeing in the youngest.

• Study Type: Observational
• Enrollment (Actual): 500000

Contacts and Locations

Study Locations

• France
  • Paris, France, 75019
    • Robert Debre Hospital - Assistance Publique Hopitaux de Paris

Participation Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

• Ages Eligible for Study: 6 years to 18 years (Child, Adult)
• Accepts Healthy Volunteers: No
• Genders Eligible for Study: All

• Sampling Method: Non-Probability Sample

Study Population

Children and adolescents aged from 6 to 18 years

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

• Children and adolescents aged from 6 to 18 years
• One dispensation of psychotropic medication or
• One mental-health related hospitalization or
• One reimbursement for an outpatient mental-health related consultation or
• One eligibility to long-term diseases corresponding to long term psychiatric diseases or
• One mental-health related cause of death using ICD-10 codes

Exclusion Criteria:

• none

Study Plan

How is the study designed?

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
To evaluate the impact of COVID-19 pandemic on use of mental health resources	prescriptions of psychotropic medications; mental health-related outpatient visits; mental health-related hospitalizations and emergency department visits	1 year

Secondary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
To evaluate the impact of COVID-19 pandemic on episodes of fatal and non-fatal self-harm episodes in children and adolescents in France	monthly counts and rates of fatal and non-fatal self-harm episodes will be assessed throughout the study period	1 year

Collaborators and Investigators

• Sponsor: Assistance Publique - Hôpitaux de Paris
• Collaborators: Agence Nationale de Recherche (ANR) National Research Agency
• Investigators: Principal Investigator: Florentia Kaguelidou, MD, PhD, Assistance Publique - Hôpitaux de Paris

Study record dates

Study Major Dates

• Study Start (Actual): July 1, 2021
• Primary Completion (Actual): June 30, 2022
• Study Completion (Actual): June 30, 2022

Study Registration Dates

• First Submitted: February 17, 2022
• First Submitted That Met QC Criteria: February 28, 2022
• First Posted (Actual): March 2, 2022

Study Record Updates

• Last Update Posted (Estimate): February 23, 2023
• Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria: February 22, 2023
• Last Verified: February 1, 2022

More Information

Terms related to this study

• Keywords: pediatrics; mental health; COVID 19 pandemic; psychotropic drug
• Additional Relevant MeSH Terms: Coronavirus Infections; Coronaviridae Infections; Nidovirales Infections; RNA Virus Infections; Virus Diseases; Infections; Respiratory Tract Infections; Respiratory Tract Diseases; Pneumonia, Viral; Pneumonia; Lung Diseases; COVID-19; Mental Disorders; Neurodevelopmental Disorders
• Other Study ID Numbers: ANR-21-COVR-0010-01

Plan for Individual participant data (IPD)

• Plan to Share Individual Participant Data (IPD)?: NO

Drug and device information, study documents

• Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product: No
• Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product: No