Mental Distress of Parents of Children with Atopic Eczema during the COVID-19 Pandemic in Hong Kong

Abstract

<p>Background: <br></p><p>Although wearing masks and frequent application of hand sanitizers were necessary during the COVID-19 pandemic, these practices negatively impacted the severity of eczema in children and caregivers' psychological well-being. <br></p><p>Aim: <br></p><p>To explore the prevalence of parental mental distress of during the COVID-19 pandemic and examine the factors correlated with parental mental distress in Hong Kong. <br></p><p>Study design and method: <br></p><p>An explanatory sequential mixed-methods study was conducted for parents of children with AE in 2021. It consisted of an online survey and a follow-up phone interviews for a subset of survey participants. The online survey included baseline demographics of participants, questions related to their lives during the COVID-19 pandemic, their mental distress [quantified by the Chinese version of the Depression Anxiety and Stress Scale (DASS-21)] and eczema severity of their children [quantified by Patient-Oriented Eczema Measure (POEM)]. The telephone interview collected parents' in-depth accounts of the situation they reported. <br></p><p>Results: <br></p><p>122 participants finished the online survey. 13 participants were phone-interviewed. 36.1%, 34.4%, and 39.3% of participants had depressive, anxiety and stress symptoms respectively. Factors correlated with parental mental distress during COVID-19 pandemic were i) worry about masks affect children eczema; ii) worry about school infection control measures affect children eczema; iii) reduced salary or loss job in COVID. Conclusion: Parents of children with eczema are vulnerable to mental distress during the COVID-19 pandemic. Public education and better collaboration between schools and parents are recommended.<br></p>