Prior to the pandemic, we already had good reason to be concerned about the mental health of children and young people. As an example, the 2017 Mental Health of Children and Young People (MHCYP) survey in England, comprising a large, national probability sample, identified that one in nine children had a probable mental health disorder, with a 49% increase in emotional disorders compared to a previous survey in 2004 (Sadler et al., 2018). The pandemic has clearly brought a broad range of challenges to children and young people. These include the direct viral threat to self, friends, and family (with recent estimates of a 17.5%–20.2% increase in parental bereavement in the United States; Kidman et al, 2021), as well as disruptions to school work, social interactions, family pressures, economic impacts, a lack of opportunity and ongoing uncertainty, and reduced access to mental health and other support from outside the home. So how have these experiences affected the mental health of children and young people?

中文翻译：

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编辑观点：在 COVID-19 背景下快速反应以了解和解决儿童和青少年的心理健康问题

在大流行之前，我们已经有充分的理由关注儿童和青少年的心理健康。例如，2017 年在英格兰进行的儿童和青少年心理健康 (MHCYP) 调查包含一个大型的全国概率样本，发现九分之一的儿童可能患有精神健康障碍，相比之下，情绪障碍增加了 49%与 2004 年的一项调查相比（Sadler 等人，2018 年）。这场大流行显然给儿童和青少年带来了广泛的挑战。其中包括对自己、朋友和家人的直接病毒威胁（最近估计美国的父母丧亲人数增加了 17.5%–20.2%；Kidman 等人，2021 年），以及学校工作、社交互动中断、家庭压力、经济影响、缺乏机会和持续的不确定性，减少从家庭以外获得心理健康和其他支持的机会。那么这些经历如何影响儿童和青少年的心理健康呢？