World Mental Health Day (WMHDAY) is being held on October 10th 2018. The World Federation for Mental Health is focusing the 2018 WMHDAY campaign on ‘Young People and Mental Health in a Changing World’. They want to bring attention to the issues our youth and young adults are facing and begin the conversation around what they need in order to grow up healthy, happy, and resilient.
Cochrane Common Mental Disorders Group works with authors from around the world to produce and disseminate systematic reviews of healthcare interventions for treating and preventing a range of mental health problems. Some of the conditions they cover include depression, anxiety, eating disorders, somatoform disorders and suicide.
One recent Cochrane Review of interest is ‘E‐Health interventions for anxiety and depression in children and adolescents with long‐term physical conditions’. Long‐term physical conditions affect 10% to 12% of children and adolescents worldwide; these individuals are at greater risk of developing psychological problems, particularly anxiety and depression. This Cochrane Review found that at present, the field of e‐health interventions for the treatment of anxiety or depression in children and adolescents with long‐term physical conditions is limited to five low quality trials. The very low‐quality of the evidence means the effects of e‐health interventions are uncertain at this time, especially in children aged under 10 years. Although it is too early to recommend e‐health interventions for this clinical population, given their growing number, and the global improvement in access to technology, there appears to be room for the development and evaluation of acceptable and effective technologically‐based treatments to suit children and adolescents with long‐term physical conditions.
