Background: Home-quarantine due to COVID-19 may have negative psychological effects on vulnerable sub-groups such as children and adolescents. We aimed to explore the prevalence of anxiety among adolescents who were in home-quarantine and its impact on onset of sleep disturbance and somatic symptoms, and on the level of agreement between adolescent and parent perceptions.
Methods: Five hundred adolescents (ages 10-17) and 500 parents participated in the study. Adolescents filled out PROMIS Anxiety, PROMIS Sleep Disturbance, and PHQ-15 Physical-Symptom forms, while their parents completed proxy questionnaires containing the same domains.
Results: 38% of the adolescents reported experiencing anxiety during home-quarantine period, 29% suffered from sleep disturbance, and 48% reported somatic symptoms. Addition of one day in home-quarantine was significantly associated with sleep disturbance (OR = 3.78, 95%CI: 1.09-8.45) and somatic symptoms (OR = 1.80, 95%CI: 1.01-3.08); female gender was associated with increased risk for somatic symptoms (OR = 2.15, 95%CI: 1.07-4.55); poor agreement in levels of anxiety, sleep disturbance and somatic symptoms was found between adolescent and parent reports (ICCs of 0.197-0.262).
Discussion: Total isolation from household members during home-quarantine may cause anxiety, sleep disturbance, and somatization among adolescents. Achieving the appropriate balance between infection control and mitigation of the potential adverse psychological effect of home-quarantine among children and adolescents should be immediate priorities for policymakers.
Keywords: COVID-19; adolescents; anxiety; children; home-quarantine; parents’ perceptions; pediatric; sleep disturbance; somatic symptoms.