Impacts of school closures on physical and mental health of children and young people: a systematic review

作者：Russell Viner, Simon Russell, Rosella Saulle, Helen A. Croker, Claire Stansfeld, Jessica Packer, Dasha Nicholls, Anne‐Lise Goddings, Chris P. Bonell, Lee Duncan Hudson, Steven Hope, Nina Schwalbe, Antony Morgan, Silvia Minozzi · 发表于：medRxiv · 年份：2021 · DOI：10.1101/2021.02.10.21251526 · 被引用次数：147 · 研究领域：COVID-19 and Mental Health、Health disparities and outcomes、COVID-19 and healthcare impacts

Abstract Background The well-documented links between education and health mean that school closures during the COVID-19 pandemic are likely to be associated with significant health harms to children and young people (CYP). A systematic review of the evidence is needed to inform policy decisions around school closures and re-openings during the pandemic. Methods We undertook a high-quality systematic review of observational quantitative studies (published or preprint) of the impacts of school closures (for any reason) on the health, wellbeing and educational outcomes of CYP, excluding impacts of closure on transmission of infection (PROSPERO CRD42020181658). We used a machine learning approach for screening articles, with decisions on inclusion and data extraction performed independently by 2 researchers. Quality was assessed for study type. A narrative synthesis of results was undertaken as data did not allow meta-analysis. Results 16,817 records were screened, of which 151 were reviewed in full-text and 72 studies were included from 20 countries. 33% were cohort studies using historical control periods; 19% pre-post studies; and 46% cross-sectional studies which assessed change by comparison with population reference data. 63% were high-quality, 25% medium-quality and 13% low-quality. Cause of closure in all studies was the first COVID-19 pandemic wave with the exception of 5 influenza studies and 1 teacher strike. 27 studies concerning mental health identified considerable...