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Effect of COVID-19 infection on psychological aspects of pre-schooler children: a cross-sectional study

Research Authors
Gellan K. Ahmed, Sayed Mostafa, Khaled Elbeh, Hamdy M. Gomaa & Saeed Soliman
Research Date
Research Journal
Middle East Current Psychiatry volume
Research Publisher
Springer Berlin Heidelberg
Research Vol
Volume 29, Issue 1
Research Website
https://scholar.google.com/scholar?oi=bibs&cluster=1386683997242728003&btnI=1&hl=en
Research Year
2022
Research_Pages
Pages 42
Research Abstract

Background

Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) had a tremendous effect on individual’s lives worldwide. The pandemic’s significant socioecological impact is one of the many burdens children confront in the current crises. As a result, this study was designed to determine the psychological impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on preschoolers, particularly the consequences of COVID-19 infection. This study involved 138 children aged 2–5.11 years old who were classified into two groups based on their COVID-19 infection history, which was documented via a PCR test. All participants were assessed by the Socioeconomic Scale and The Children’s Behavior Checklist (CBCL).

Results

COVID-19 infection was found in 21.7% of the children who participated in this study. Furthermore, children with COVID-19 had a higher percentage of clinical rating on the CBCL Profile of DSM-5 scales for affective problems (13.3 vs. 7.4%), anxiety problems (13.3 vs. 9.3%), pervasive developmental problems (20 vs. 13%), and oppositional defiant problems (6.7 vs. 5.6%) than children without COVID-19. Anxiety and somatic problems had a positive correlation with the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the lives of children.

Conclusions

Children infected with COVID-19 were more likely to have psychological issues, such as affective disorders, anxiety problems, pervasive developmental problems, and oppositional defiant problems. These psychological issues had a relationship with the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the lives of children.