A retrospective review found that pediatric hospitalizations for mental health diagnoses increased dramatically from 2009 to 2019, with the majority of cases in 2019 involving attempted suicide or self-injury.
According to Mary Arakelyan, MPH, of Dartmouth Hitchcock Medical Center in Lebanon, New Hampshire, and co-authors in JAMAopens in a new tab or window, the proportion of pediatric hospitalizations involving attempted suicide, suicidal ideation, or self-injury diagnoses increased from 30.7% in 2009 to 64.2% in 2019.
Suicidal Or Self-Harming Behavior Is Prevalent
The study excluded psychiatric facilities and did not cover the years of the coronavirus pandemic, implying a significant undercount.
The growth in suicide conduct as a cause was especially striking: the proportion of pediatric hospitalizations including suicidal or self-harming behavior increased to 64.2 percent in 2019, up from 30.7 percent in 2009. Suicidal conduct increased to 12.7 percent of all pediatric hospitalizations in 2019 from 3.5 percent in 2009.
The study looked at the Kids’ Inpatient Database, which is the largest nationally representative database of pediatric acute care discharges for patients under the age of 21. Mental health hospitalizations increased dramatically in children aged 11 to 14, but decreased in younger and older age groups over the same 11-year period.
Girls now account for 61.1 percent of all hospitalizations, up from 51.8 percent in 2009. Suicidal behavior hospitalizations increased to 129,699 in 2019 from 49,285 in 2009.
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Call For More Mental Health Services
The findings should encourage governments to place more mental health care resources in schools and communities, which “may well result in fewer hospitalizations,” according to Mary Arakelyan, a research project manager at Dartmouth Health Children’s and a co-author.
Meanwhile, she believes hospitals should tackle their growing importance as mental health providers.
The study found a significant shift in the types of mental health problems treated in hospitals, with depressive disorders increasing from 29.7 percent in 2009 to 56.8 percent in 2019.
Hospitalizations for bipolar disorders, conduct disorders, and psychotic illnesses such as schizophrenia have decreased, possibly as a result of earlier intervention programs and more comprehensive care.
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