Background: The influence of the COVID-19 pandemic is unprecedented on physical and mental health. This study aims to measure the psychological impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on adolescent living in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.
Methodology: A cross-sectional study was carried among a total of 370 adolescent individuals aged between 15 and 19 years, living in five main cities of Saudi Arabia, including Riyadh, Jeddah, Dammam, Makkah, and Medina. We used a validated online-based questionnaire consisting of a 6-ITEM Kutcher Adolescent Depression Scale to measure depression and a Generalized Anxiety Disorder 7-item (GAD-7) scale to measure anxiety. The questionnaire was modified in the Arabic version to assess patients' overall level of anxiety and depression.
Results: In this study, we received 340 answers for our questionnaire (Response rate = 91.9 %) with a mean age of 17.25 years old and 86% of them were females. Among them, 52% of participants were possibly depressed and needed further investigations. According to GAD -7, 33% had mild anxiety, 18% had moderate anxiety, and 13% had severe anxiety, while 36% did not have anxiety. Younger participants and females were more significantly associated with a higher incidence of depression and anxiety.
Conclusion: We found a higher prevalence of depression and anxiety among adolescents in five regions of Saudi Arabia, which was affected by the age and gender of participants. Further, investigations using larger sample sizes should be conducted.
Key words: COVID 19, pandemic, adolescent, psychology, anxiety, depression.
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