Key Points
Antidepressant use rose sharply in adolescents and young adults, particularly among girls, after the onset of Covid, according to a new study...
Importantly, the increase in the antidepressant dispensing rate during the pandemic was driven by females: 130 per cent faster among girls aged 12 to 17 and 60 per cent faster among females aged 18 to 25...
Multiple studies suggest that rates of anxiety and depression among female adolescents increased during the pandemic, Chua said..
In contrast to females, the antidepressant dispensing rate changed little among male young adults after March 2020 and declined among male adolescents, which Chua found surprising...
This could be because male adolescents may have skipped physicals and other health care visits during the pandemic, decreasing opportunities to diagnose and treat anxiety and depression, the researchers said.. Chua said the overall rise in antidepressant dispensing to adolescents and young adults may not only be related to worsened mental health..
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Covid pandemic had long-lasting impact on teens’ mental health, substance use: Lancet study
17, Mar, 23The COVID-19 pandemic has had a long-lasting impact on the mental health and substance use among adolescents, according to a study published in The Lancet Child & Adolescent Health journal.