COVID-19 pandemic impact among adolescents with eating disorders referred to Italian psychiatric unit

Problem:The COVID‐19 pandemic has triggered or exacerbated eating disorders(EDs), especially in adolescents. This study examined the prevalence of admissions ofpatients with EDs at the Child and Adolescent Psychiatry Unit from the pre‐COVID‐19pandemic to March 2023 and explored the differences in dimensions of ED'ssymptomatology according to the year of access.Methods:We included 174 children and adolescents, 94.3% females and 5.7%males, with a diagnosis of ED (Mage= 14.87;SD= 1.72). TheEating DisorderInventory‐3(EDI‐3), theBody Uneasiness Test(BUT) andYouth Self Report ASEBA(YSR) were assessed. A one‐way analysis of variance test was performed.Findings:EDs' hospitalization prevalence was higher in the years 2020 and 2021compared to pre‐COVID‐19 and the year 2022. Considering the ED psycho-pathology (EDI‐3), findings showed a higher score in the dimension of the push tothinness, body dissatisfaction, asceticism, and fear of maturity in the year 2021compared to pre‐pandemic. Regarding the discomfort related to the image of one'sown body (BUT), results showed an increase in the global severity index in the year2022 compared to pre‐pandemic and in weight phobia in the year 2021 compared tothe year 2020. Concerning the internalizing symptoms (YSR), a tendency was foundfor withdrawal/depression, with higher levels in the year 2022 compared to theyear 2020.Conclusions:Our study highlighted the increase of different types of EDssymptomatology related to concerns about weight, especially 2 and 3 years afterthe outbreak of the pandemic, on which the literature is still scarce, especially in theItalian context.