{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,4,14]],"date-time":"2026-04-14T10:55:36Z","timestamp":1776164136876,"version":"3.50.1"},"reference-count":39,"publisher":"MDPI AG","issue":"12","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2023,6,8]],"date-time":"2023-06-08T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1686182400000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"content-domain":{"domain":[],"crossmark-restriction":false},"short-container-title":["JCM"],"abstract":"<jats:p>Aim: Concerns have been raised about possible neuropsychiatric sequelae of COVID-19. The objective of this study was to examine the plausibility of long-term mental health consequences of COVID-19 by assessing a sample of children after the resolution of the acute SARS-CoV-2 infection. Method: As part of a systematic follow-up assessment of pediatric patients with COVID-19 conducted at two university children\u2019s hospitals, 50 children (56% males) aged 8 to 17 years (median 11.5), 26% with previous multisystem inflammatory syndrome in children (MIS-C), without a prior history of neuropsychiatric disorders, received a battery of clinical neuropsychiatric and neuropsychological rating scales that included the Pediatric Migraine Disability Assessment (PedMIDAS), Sleep Disturbance Scale for Children (SDSC), Multidimensional Anxiety Scale for Children (MASC-2), Child Depression Inventory (CDI-2), Child Behavior Checklist (CBCL), and the NEPSY II (Neuropsychological Assessment, Second Edition). The assessments were conducted between 1 and 18 months (median 8 months) after the acute infection. Results: The CBCL internalizing symptoms score was in the clinical range for 40% of the participants (vs. a population expected rate of about 10%, p &lt; 0.001). A sleep disturbance was detected in 28%, clinically significant anxiety in 48%, and depressive symptoms in 16%. The NEPSY II scores showed impairment in attention and other executive functions in 52%, and memory deficits in 40% of the children. Conclusions: These data from direct assessment of a sample of children who had SARS-CoV-2 infection show higher than expected rates of neuropsychiatric symptoms, thus supporting the possibility that COVID-19 may have mental health sequelae long after the resolution of the acute infection.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.3390\/jcm12123917","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2023,6,8]],"date-time":"2023-06-08T02:02:28Z","timestamp":1686189748000},"page":"3917","update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3390\/mdpi_crossmark_policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":12,"title":["A Neuropsychiatric Assessment of Children with Previous SARS-CoV-2 Infection"],"prefix":"10.3390","volume":"12","author":[{"given":"Veronica","family":"Scarselli","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Human Neuroscience, Sapienza University of Rome, 00185 Rome, Italy"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Dario","family":"Calderoni","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Human Neuroscience, Sapienza University of Rome, 00185 Rome, Italy"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Arianna","family":"Terrinoni","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Human Neuroscience, Sapienza University of Rome, 00185 Rome, Italy"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0003-4378-8419","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Chiara","family":"Davico","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Public Health and Pediatric Sciences, University of Turin, 10126 Turin, Italy"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0003-2250-6048","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Giulia","family":"Pruccoli","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Public Health and Pediatric Sciences, University of Turin, 10126 Turin, Italy"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-8495-1844","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Marco","family":"Denina","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Public Health and Pediatric Sciences, University of Turin, 10126 Turin, Italy"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Chiara","family":"Carducci","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Emergency, Acceptance and General Pediatrics, Bambino Ges\u00f9 Children\u2019s Hospital, 00165 Rome, Italy"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0001-8947-4429","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Andrea","family":"Smarrazzo","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Emergency, Acceptance and General Pediatrics, Bambino Ges\u00f9 Children\u2019s Hospital, 00165 Rome, Italy"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Melania","family":"Martucci","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Human Neuroscience, Sapienza University of Rome, 00185 Rome, Italy"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Mariaelena","family":"Presicce","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Human Neuroscience, Sapienza University of Rome, 00185 Rome, Italy"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Daniele","family":"Marcotulli","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Public Health and Pediatric Sciences, University of Turin, 10126 Turin, Italy"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Luca","family":"Arletti","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Public Health and Pediatric Sciences, University of Turin, 10126 Turin, Italy"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Mauro","family":"Ferrara","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Human Neuroscience, Sapienza University of Rome, 00185 Rome, Italy"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0001-5773-5356","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Silvia","family":"Garazzino","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Public Health and Pediatric Sciences, University of Turin, 10126 Turin, Italy"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Rosanna","family":"Mariani","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Emergency, Acceptance and General Pediatrics, Bambino Ges\u00f9 Children\u2019s Hospital, 00165 Rome, Italy"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Andrea","family":"Campana","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Emergency, Acceptance and General Pediatrics, Bambino Ges\u00f9 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