American Journal of Medical and Clinical Sciences. 2024;
9(1):(100-126)
Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic on the Health of Preschool Children: A Systematic Review
Amanda Araújo de Carvalho, Tatiana Frederico de Almeida, Maria Beatriz Barreto de Sousa Cabral, Maria Cristina Teixeira Cangussu.
Abstract
This systematic review aimed to explore the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on the
health of preschoolers. The search for articles covered the years 2020 to 2023 and was
carried out in the Scielo and Pubmed databases with the following keywords: COVID-19 and
Impacts in early childhood health; COVID-19 and early childhood mental health; COVID-19
and child health; COVID-19 and child mental health; COVID -19 and mental health and
children; COVID -19 and anxiety and Sciences. A total of 34 articles on the subject were found.
When assessing physical health, the reduced access to health services and vaccination/
immunization coverage was registered, as well as a greater chance of hospitalization in case
of COVID-19 infection compared to adolescents; food insecurity, change in food regulation,
increased use of screens/electronics, less frequent physical exercise and games, changes in
sleep quality, abuse (physical and psychological) and neglect. For mental health, there is an
increase in anxiety, stress, tiredness, depression, anguish, aggressiveness, irritability, and
altered emotional regulation, in addition to the association of socioeconomic conditions
with mental suffering. The COVID-19 pandemic had direct and indirect repercussions on
the physical and mental spheres of child development, bringing about sudden changes in
everyday life and the family environment.
