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Cited by 156Eating Disorders and BehaviorsCOVID-19 and healthcare impactsNutrition, Health and Food Behavior

Medical admissions among adolescents with eating disorders during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Open access
Otto, Alana K., Jary, Jessica M., Sturza, Julie, Miller, Catherine A., Prohaska, Natalie, Bravender, Terrill, Van Huysse, Jessica·2021·PEDIATRICS
DOI 10.1542/peds.2021-052201
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Abstract

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES Emerging data suggest the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has been associated with worsening symptoms of eating disorders (EDs) among both adults and adolescents. With this study, we sought to determine if medical admission patterns among adolescents admitted to our institution for restrictive EDs changed during the pandemic, relative to prepandemic counts of admissions per month. METHODS We performed a chart review of patients aged 10 to 23 years admitted to our children’s hospital for restrictive EDs from March 2017 through March 2021 and completed an interrupted time series analysis of admission counts per month. Demographic variables for admitted patients were compared by using χ2, Fisher's exact, and 2-sample t tests. RESULTS ED-related medical admissions at our institution increased significantly during the COVID-19 pandemic. The total number of admissions during the first 12 months of the COVID-19 pandemic (April 1, 2020, through March 31, 2021, n = 125) was more than double the mean number of admissions per year for the same time frame (April 1 through March 31) for the previous 3 years (mean = 56). Patient demographics were similar before and during the pandemic, with the exception that patients admitted during the COVID-19 pandemic were less likely than those admitted before the pandemic to have public insurance. CONCLUSIONS Medical admissions related to restrictive EDs among adolescents increased significantly during the COVID-19 pandemic. Pediatric providers in a variety of settings should be prepared to care for adolescents with restrictive EDs during the pandemic.

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  • The current trends in the number and proportion of mental health condition-related emergency department visits, along with previous research, indicate that the mental health effects of the pandemic might be particularly high among adolescent girls.

    “The current trends in the number and proportion of MHC-related ED visits, along with previous research ( 1 , 2 , 4 -8 ), indicate that the mental health effects of the pandemic might be particularly high among adolescent girls.”

    From Pediatric Emergency Department Visits Associated with Mental Health Conditions Before and During the COVID-19 Pandemic — United States, January 2019–January 2022 (2022) · cites this paper as [5]

    Split into 2 atoms — 0 confirmed, 2 partially supported, 0 disputed, 0 misattributed, 0 unverifiable. Expand the claim to see per-atom verdicts.

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  • Eating disorders can be triggered by pandemic-related risk factors (such as lack of structure in daily routine, emotional distress, and changes in food availability) or exacerbated by reduced access to mental health care during the pandemic.

    “Eating disorders can be triggered by pandemic-related risk factors (e.g., lack of structure in daily routine, emotional distress, and changes in food availability) or exacerbated by reduced access to mental health care during the pandemic ( 4 , 5 ).”

    From Pediatric Emergency Department Visits Associated with Mental Health Conditions Before and During the COVID-19 Pandemic — United States, January 2019–January 2022 (2022) · cites this paper as [5]

    Split into 2 atoms — 1 confirmed, 1 partially supported, 0 disputed, 0 misattributed, 0 unverifiable. Expand the claim to see per-atom verdicts.

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  • Emergency department visits related to mental health conditions during the pandemic might underestimate the actual need and represent more severe presentations of mental health conditions than if earlier intervention and treatment were available.

    “ED visits related to MHCs during the pandemic might underestimate the actual need and represent more severe presentations of MHCs than if earlier intervention and treatment were available ( 5 ).”

    From Pediatric Emergency Department Visits Associated with Mental Health Conditions Before and During the COVID-19 Pandemic — United States, January 2019–January 2022 (2022) · cites this paper as [5]

    The discussion (page unavailable) says pandemic-related barriers to eating-disorder care may make the study’s estimate conservative, and that it examined only severely ill adolescents admitted for medical stabilization. It did not study emergency-department visits for mental health conditions generally or establish that presentations were more severe than they would have been with earlier intervention. (LLM, conf=0.85)

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Cites

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Research works printed but not linked: 3

  1. Gard MC, Freeman CP. The dismantling of a myth: a review of eating disorders and socioeconomic status. Int J Eat Dis- ord. 1996;20(1):1-12
  2. Rogers L, Resnick MD, Mitchell JE, Blum RW. The relationship between socioeco- nomic status and eating-disordered behaviors in a community sample of adolescent girls. Int J Eat Disord. 1997;22(1):15-23
  3. Schwartz MD, Costello KL. Eating disor- der in teens during the COVID-19 pan- demic. J Adolesc Health. 2021;68(5):1022

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Related

Authors
Otto, A. K., Jary, J. M., Sturza, J., Miller, C. A., Prohaska, N., Bravender, T., & Van Huysse, J.
Affiliations
  • aDivision of Adolescent Medicine
  • bDepartment of Pediatrics
  • University of Michigan (US)
  • cDepartment of Psychiatry, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan
ORCID
Venue
PEDIATRICS
Publisher
American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP)
Published
2021-10-01
Volume
148
Issue
4
ISSN
  • 0031-4005 (ISSN-L)
  • 1098-4275
DOI
10.1542/peds.2021-052201
OpenAlex
W3180445420
Cited by
156
References
28
Citations by year
2026: 9 · 2025: 15 · 2024: 30 · 2023: 45 · 2022: 54 · 2021: 3
FWCI
22.50
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
Locations
  • PEDIATRICS (publishedVersion)
  • PubMed (publishedVersion)
Topics
  • Social Sciences › Psychology › Clinical Psychology › Eating Disorders and Behaviors
  • Health Sciences › Medicine › Oncology › COVID-19 and healthcare impacts
  • Health Sciences › Nursing › Nutrition and Dietetics › Nutrition, Health and Food Behavior
Keywords
eating disorders, adolescents, restrictive eating disorders, medical admissions, COVID-19 pandemic, hospital admission trends, public insurance, pediatric hospital care
MeSH terms
Avoidant Restrictive Food Intake Disorder, COVID-19, SARS-CoV-2, Adolescent, Child, Female, Hospitalization, Humans, Male, Michigan, Young Adult, Pandemics, Interrupted Time Series Analysis

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