Addressing perinatal mental health in adolescents.

Youth mental health problems are rising nationally. Virginia ranks among the lowest states in youth mental health access and has concentrated pockets of food insecurity (FI), underscoring the urgency of policy responses. FI is a known risk factor, yet surveillance often relies on single-item measures. We introduce a multidimensional Food Insecurity Index (FII) to examine associations with adolescent mental health. We analyzed 2023 Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance System data from Virginia (n = 1866) and the United States (n = 10,724). The FII combined five indicators capturing acute scarcity and chronic dietary compromise. Survey-weighted logistic regression estimated adjusted odds ratios (AORs) for persistent sadness or hopelessness. Each 1-point increase in FII was associated with higher odds of persistent sadness or hopelessness in Virginia (AOR = 1.066, 95% CI: 1.005-1.130) and nationally (AOR = 1.087, 95% CI: 1.062-1.112). Female students had higher odds than males, and bullying was a strong correlate. A dose-response pattern was observed. Integrating FI screening with nutrition and behavioral health supports may help identify and address overlapping risks. Multidimensional FI is consistently associated with poorer mental health among high school students.

Emotional symptoms and problematic internet use among adolescents with and without childhood trauma: A two-wave cross-lagged panel and network analysis.

Longitudinal Analysis of Tobacco Use and Oral Health in Adolescents: Findings From the Population Assessment of Tobacco and Health Study.

Adolescence is often identified as the period of time when individuals first begin to experience mental health needs, though a gap remains between need and mental health service use. With limited knowledge of continued impact of mental health service use on future services and mental health need, this study aims to examine the longitudinal, bidirectional relations between mental health service utilization and mental health symptoms across four time points. Data came from four waves ofthe National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health (Add Health; N = 7,902). We examined mental health service (MHS) utilization in the past 12 months and depressive symptoms. Cross-lagged panel analyses were conducted, adjusting for sociodemographic characteristics. Findings indicated that school MHS utilization at Tn increased the odds of using MHS at Tn+1 across all waves (OR = 1.34, 1.53, and 1.61, respectively). Second, depressive symptoms at Tn also predicted depressive symptoms at Tn+1 (β = .21, .30, .30, respectively). Third, as MHS use at Tn predicted depressive symptoms at Tn+1 (β = .14 (school), .27, .11, .18, respectively), depressive symptoms at Tn were significantly related to future mental health service use at Tn+1 (OR = 1.09, 1.15, 1.05 respectively). The current study extends the understanding of the reciprocal relationship between MHS use and depressive symptoms. The study suggests the critical importance of using school-based services in adolescence to promote mental health service use in adulthood, highlighting implications for adolescent mental health service providers across service settings.

Although existing literature has focused on the impact of racial/ethnic discrimination on Chinese American youth mental health during the pandemic, less attention has been paid to the protective family-level processes that can buffer against such mental health risks. Guided by the dual-factor model of mental health and family systems theory, this study aimed to explore the role of affirming family communication in Chinese American youth mental health in the midst of racial discrimination. Participants were 205 Chinese American youth and their parents, who completed an online survey in the spring of 2020 during the COVID-19 pandemic. By conducting a series of path analyses, we found that affirming family communication functions as a promotive factor that counteracts the negative impact of prepandemic peer discrimination on youth externalizing problems. However, the positive influences of affirming family communication on internalizing problems and subjective well-being were weakened when Chinese American youth faced high levels of COVID-19-related peer discrimination. The findings offer implications for school psychology practice by underscoring how to engage with families to promote youth mental health in the context of racial discrimination. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2026 APA, all rights reserved).

Understanding ACEs and suicide risk in depressed adolescents: The mediating effects of self-hate and anhedonia.

Adolescent Immunization in a Shifting Environment: Implications for Adolescent and Young Adult Health.

Beyond the Emergency Department: Behavioral Health Urgent Care as a Child and Adolescent Mental Health Crisis Care Solution.

Effectiveness of a nurse-led health belief model-based educational intervention for reducing smartphone addiction in adolescents: A randomized controlled trial.

Digital self-harm among adolescents in China: Latent profiles, correlates, and its relationship with suicidal behaviors.

Peer networks may influence early psychiatric vulnerability, both through direct exposure to peers' mental disorders and via peers' genetic predispositions. Clarifying these peer influences could inform preventive strategies aiming to improve adolescent mental health. To determine whether adolescents' exposure to peers' diagnosed mental disorders or genetic predispositions is associated with subsequent risk of mental disorders and whether these associations differ across disorders or peer network contexts. Nationwide register-based cohort study including Finnish residents born between 1985 and 2000. Cohort members were assigned to 4 peer network contexts: lower secondary school, upper secondary school, postal code area, and 1000-m square. Follow-up extended from age 17 years until first mental disorder diagnosis, emigration, death, or December 31, 2023. Study data were analyzed from October 2025 to March 2026. (1) Peers' family-based genetic risk scores (FGRS) for mental disorders, estimated from diagnoses in first- through fifth-degree relatives and (2) peers' own diagnoses of mental disorders. Time to an incident diagnosis of the disorder after age 17 years. Associations were estimated using Cox proportional hazards models adjusted for sex, birth year, proband FGRS, parental education and income level, and peer network size. Of 604 819 cohort members (mean [SD] age, 17 [0] years; 303 967 male [50.3%]), 234 117 received a mental disorder diagnosis over a median (IQR) follow-up of 11.7 (7.5-16.5) years. Peer FGRS was associated with subsequent risk of the same disorder across disorders and peer networks, with the greatest associations for externalizing disorders in upper secondary school (hazard ratio [HR], 1.34; 95% CI, 1.29-1.38). In contrast, peer diagnoses showed the strongest associations for internalizing disorders in upper secondary school (HR, 1.17; 95% CI, 1.15-1.18). Cross-disorder associations were also observed, with peer FGRS for externalizing disorders associated with proband internalizing outcomes, and vice versa. However, whereas peer internalizing diagnoses were associated with both proband internalizing and externalizing outcomes, associations between peer externalizing diagnoses and proband internalizing outcomes were substantially weaker than those with proband externalizing outcomes. Findings of this cohort study suggest that peer environments, particularly in upper secondary school settings, are associated with mental health trajectories. More research is needed to elucidate the mechanisms underlying these findings.

The aim is to determine trajectories of youth sports participation and their effect on adolescent cardiometabolic health. We included data from waves four, five, and six of the Longitudinal Study of Australian Children and the intermediary Child Health CheckPoint (CHCP) wave. Participants ( N = 1851) were 12.0 ± 0.4 yr old at the CHCP. We used latent class analysis to identify organized sport trajectories and conducted linear regressions to compare cardiometabolic risk score (CMRS; summative z scores for body mass index, systolic and diastolic blood pressure, high- and low-density lipoprotein cholesterol, triglycerides, and glucose) between classes. Analyses were repeated for team and individual sports participation. Analyses were adjusted for sex, socioeconomic status, and sexual maturity. Four latent classes were identified, including consistent sport participants (65.2%), late uptakes (17.4%), dropouts (7.9%), and nonparticipants (9.6%). Dropouts had significantly worse CMRS ( β = 0.95; 95% confidence intervals (CIs), 0.06-1.85) than nonparticipants. For team and individual sport participation, five trajectories were identified. These included consistent participants in both team and individual sports (31.1%), consistent individual (18.2%), consistent team (18.6%), moving from individual to team (14.9%), and nonparticipants (17.3%). The unadjusted model showed significantly better CMRS for consistent participants in both sports ( β = - 0.62; 95% CIs, - 1.07 to - 0.17) and team sports ( β = - 0.53; 95% CIs, - 1.03 to - 0.04). Secondary outcomes generally showed no statistically significant findings. Sports dropout in early adolescence is associated with poorer CMRS, while consistent participation in team sport with or without individual sport is associated with better CMRS. Further research exploring associations between cardiometabolic health and sports dropout and strategies to improve youth sport retention should be prioritized.

Major depressive disorder (MDD) is a leading contributor to the global burden of disease and commonly develops during adolescence. The COVID-19 pandemic was linked to significant increases in depressive symptoms among youth, but less is known about whether these increases have continued in recent years. Using the first four consecutive years of methodologically comparable national data since the pandemic, we examined changes in past-year major depressive episode (MDE) among U.S. adolescents aged 12-17 years from 2021 to 2024 and evaluated demographic and substance use factors. We analyzed pooled, cross-sectional data from the 2021-2024 National Survey on Drug Use and Health (NSDUH), a nationally representative survey of non-institutionalized U.S. residents. The sample included 43,828 adolescents aged 12-17 years. Past-year MDE was assessed using DSM-5-based criteria. Survey-weighted logistic regression models estimated changes over time and adjusted associations with age, sex, race/ethnicity, and past-year tobacco, alcohol, and marijuana use. Predicted prevalences and 95% confidence intervals were calculated using post-estimation margins. The prevalence of past-year MDE decreased from 20.5% in 2021 to 14.8% in 2024, reflecting a 38.5% relative reduction. Adjusted models showed decreasing odds of MDE over time. Girls had significantly higher odds of MDE compared to boys, and older adolescents were at greatest risk. Compared with non-Hispanic White adolescents, non-Hispanic Black/African American, non-Hispanic Asian, and non-Hispanic Native Hawaiian/Other Pacific Islander adolescents had lower odds of MDE, while non-Hispanic multiracial adolescents had higher odds. Alcohol and marijuana use were linked to increased odds of MDE. Past-year MDE among U.S. adolescents declined from 2021 to 2024, indicating partial recovery following pandemic-related increases. Despite overall improvements, ongoing disparities based on sex, age, race/ethnicity, and substance use highlight the continued need for targeted adolescent mental health prevention and early intervention efforts.

Few studies have described long-term respiratory sequelae of adolescent (people aged 10-19years) tuberculosis (TB) survivors. We hypothesized that compared with healthy adolescents with no history of TB, survivors of adolescent pulmonary TB have greater respiratory impairment (reduced lung function) and disability (symptoms and activity limitations). In this prospective cohort study in Lima, Peru, we used spirometry, oscillometry, and the St George's Respiratory Questionnaire (SGRQ) to evaluate, on 2 separate occasions, the lung health of adolescents successfully treated for pulmonary TB and matched healthy controls. TB survivors with abnormal lung function underwent chest computed tomography (CT). Using mixed-effects regression with an interaction term for time since treatment completion and random effects for individual and matched pairs, we modeled changes in lung function and disability over 24months from treatment completion, comparing findings between TB survivors and controls. Compared with 101 controls (median age 17years, 56% male), 101 TB survivors (median age 18years, 56% male) had less favorable forced expiratory volume in 1 second, forced vital capacity, total airway resistance (R5), small airway resistance (R5-20), and reactance area (AX). Over the study period, AX, R5, and R5-20 improved for TB survivors but remained worse than controls. TB survivors had persistently greater respiratory disability (measured by SGRQ). Chest CTs of TB survivors demonstrated architectural distortion, reticular patterns, nodules, and bronchiectasis. Adolescent TB survivors experience persistent, symptomatic chronic lung disease despite bacteriological cure. Our findings highlight the need for respiratory assessments beyond treatment completion.

Adolescent and Young Adult Vaccination: A Position Paper of the Society for Adolescent Health and Medicine.

Innovative qualitative methods are important in nursing research for understanding perspectives that are often under-heard, including those of adolescents. This methodological article draws on a focused ethnographic study of 11 urban adolescents aged 12-18 years to examine the use of photo elicitation in nursing research on greenspace, health and place. Using disposable cameras, participant-led photo tasks, semi-structured interviews and integrated visual-verbal analysis, the study explored how photo elicitation supported adolescent engagement while generating insight into how young people perceived and used urban greenspaces. This article discusses the methodological and ethical issues that arose in the study, including camera training, timely return of cameras, assent and parental consent, privacy and image ownership, and the interpretation of photographs alongside interview and fieldnote data. It also reflects on the integration of emic and etic perspectives and on the role of reflexivity in analysing adolescent-generated visual data. Trustworthiness was supported through verbatim transcription, audit trails, NVivo analysis and team triangulation, with analysis informed by the approach of Braun and Clarke (2006) . Photo elicitation supported reflection, participant-led discussion and richer contextual understanding of adolescents' experiences. This article offers practical guidance for nursing researchers using visual methods with adolescents, with an emphasis on study design, ethical planning, and integrated analysis of visual and verbal data. These methodological lessons are relevant to adolescent health, community health and nursing research using participatory qualitative approaches.

Megatrends and equity gaps in global digital health: A bibliometric review (2010-2025).

In developing countries, many organizations are attempting to implement interventions to improve adolescent mental, sexual, and reproductive health (ASRH). A key challenge in these efforts is the efficient utilization of available resources. However, there is a considerable lack of efficiency studies, particularly in high resource-constrained settings such as Niger. Addressing this gap, the present study assessed the delivery of adolescent mental, sexual, and reproductive health services in Niger, while evaluating the technical efficiency and its determinants within public health facilities providing adolescent sexual and reproductive health services. A cross-sectional survey was conducted at 160 rural and urban health facilities in Niamey and Maradi, from May 31 to June 24, 2022. Descriptive frequency analysis assessed the availability of mental and sexual/reproductive health services. Stochastic frontier analysis (translog function) measured technical efficiency, while fractional logit regression identified influencing factors. Over 89% of surveyed health facilities in Maradi and Niamey reported providing sexual and reproductive health services to adolescents. Conversely, the availability of mental health services was limited, with only 10% of facilities offering such support in these regions. Stochastic estimation revealed an average technical efficiency score of 45.2% (95%CI: 0.410-0.49). Notably, higher-than-average efficiency scores were observed among facilities managed by male personnel. The findings highlight significant gaps in the provision of mental health services, underscoring the need for targeted interventions. Training health personnel to effectively manage adolescents with mental health disorders is recommended. The comparatively low technical efficiency score suggests room for improvement; establishing well-equipped and functional pharmacies with relevant sexual and reproductive health products may contribute to enhanced performance in health service delivery.

Tobacco use is disproportionately common among individuals with mental health problems, yet the direction of this association remains unclear. It is also uncertain whether this relationship varies by sex or by type of tobacco product. This study aimed to further characterize the association between tobacco use and mental health symptoms during adolescence, with a particular focus on sex differences and product type. Data were drawn from the Swedish prospective cohort Longitudinal Research on Development In Adolescence (LoRDIA). Tobacco use (cigarette smoking and/or Swedish snus) was examined longitudinally from ages 12/13 to 17 in relation to psychosomatic symptoms, and cross-sectionally at age 17 with respect to depressive symptoms and suicidal ideation. Longitudinal analyses performed on 1592 adolescents showed that tobacco initiation was associated with worsening of psychosomatic health, particularly among girls. Cross-sectional analyses at age 17 showed that tobacco use was associated with higher odds of depressive symptoms and suicidal ideation after adjusting for sex, self-rated socioeconomic status, and risk consumption of alcohol. In sex-stratified cross-sectional analyses, tobacco use (cigarettes and/or snus) was associated with psychological distress especially among girls. Similarly, dual product use and high frequency of use were associated with higher levels of psychosomatic symptoms in girls only. Exclusive snus was uncommon and findings inconclusive. These findings highlight pronounced sex differences in the association between tobacco use and adolescent mental health, with greater vulnerability observed among girls. Further research is needed to clarify the role of snus in mental health outcomes, particularly in female populations.