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Background and Objectives: The widespread adoption of virtual care during the pandemic may not have been uniform across populations, including among paediatric immigrants and refugees. We sought to examine the association between virtual mental healthcare utilisation and immigration factors., Methods: This population-based cohort study of immigrants and refugees (3-17 years) used linked health administrative databases in Ontario, Canada (March 2020 to December 2021). Exposures included self-reported Canadian language ability (CLA) at arrival and immigration category (economic class, family class and refugee). The primary outcome was the visit modality (inperson/virtual) measured as a rate of physician-based mental healthcare visits. Modified Poisson regression model estimated adjusted rate ratios (aRRs) with 95% CIs., Results: Among 22 420 immigrants, 12 135 (54%) did not have CLA (economic class: 6310, family class: 2207, refugees: 3618) and 10 285 did (economic class; 6293, family class: 1469, refugees: 2529). The cohort's mean age (SD) was 12.0 (4.0) years and half (50.3%) were female. Of 71 375 mental health visits, 47 989 (67.2%) were delivered virtually. Compared with economic class immigrants with CLA (referent), refugees with and without CLA had a lower risk of virtual care utilisation (CLA: aRR 0.89, 95% CI 0.86 to 0.93; non-CLA: aRR 0.80, 95% CI 0.77 to 0.83), as did family class immigrants with CLA (aRR 0.96, 95% CI 0.92 to 0.99). No differences in virtual care utilisation were observed among economic class immigrants with CLA and other immigrant groups., Conclusions: Language ability at arrival and immigration category are associated with virtual mental healthcare utilisation. Whether findings reflect user preference or inequities in accessibility, particularly for refugees and those without CLA at arrival, warrants further study., Competing Interests: Competing interests: NRS reported receiving personal fees from the BMJ Group Archives of Disease in Childhood, grants from the Canadian Institutes for Health Research and the Ontario Ministry of Health, grants from the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health, and grants from The Hospital for Sick Children outside the submitted work., (© Author(s) (or their employer(s)) 2024. Re-use permitted under CC BY-NC. No commercial re-use. See rights and permissions. Published by BMJ.)

Objective: With increased utilization of virtual care in mental health, examining its appropriateness in various clinical scenarios is warranted. This study aimed to compare the risk of adverse psychiatric outcomes following virtual versus in-person mental health follow-up care after a psychiatric emergency department (ED) visit., Methods: Using population-based health administrative data in Ontario (2021), we identified 28,232 adults discharged from a psychiatric ED visit who had a follow-up mental health visit within 14 days postdischarge. We compared those whose first follow-up visit was virtual (telephone or video) versus in-person on their risk for experiencing either a repeat psychiatric ED visit, psychiatric hospitalization, intentional self-injury, or suicide in the 15-90 days post-ED visit. Cox proportional hazard models generated adjusted hazard ratios (aHRs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs), adjusted for age, income quintile, psychiatric hospitalization, and intentional self-injury in the 2 years prior to ED visit. We stratified by sex and diagnosis at index ED visits based on the International Classification of Diseases and Related Health Problems, 10th Revision, Canada (ICD-10-CA) coding., Results: About 65% ( n  = 18,354) of first follow-up visits were virtual, while 35% ( n  = 9,878) were in-person. About 13.9% and 14.6% of the virtual and in-person groups, respectively, experienced the composite outcome, corresponding to incidence rates of 60.9 versus 74.2 per 1000 person-years (aHR 0.95, 95% CI 0.89 to 1.01). Results were similar for individual elements of the composite outcome, when stratifying by sex and index psychiatric diagnosis, when varying exposure (7 days) and outcome periods (60 and 30 days), and comparing "only" virtual versus "any" in-person follow-up during the 14-day follow-up., Conclusions and Relevance: These results support virtual care as a modality to increase access to follow-up after an acute care psychiatric encounter across a wide range of diagnoses. Prospective trials to discern whether this is due to the comparable efficacy of virtual and in-person care, or due solely to appropriate patient selection may be warranted., Competing Interests: Declaration of Conflicting InterestsThe authors declared no potential conflicts of interest with respect to the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article.

Background: Mental health (MH) conditions are prevalent in adolescents with childhood-onset SLE (cSLE). Early identification is crucial in preventing poor patient outcomes; however, MH screening rates remain low., Local Problem: From July 2021-January 2022, only 15% of adolescents in a paediatric tertiary care cSLE clinic were being screened for depression and anxiety. By November 2023, we aimed to increase the percentage of patients with cSLE (≥12-18 years) screened for depression (Patient Health Questionnaire: PHQ-9) and anxiety (Generalised Anxiety Disorder-7: GAD-7) from 15% to 80%., Methods: This quality improvement project employed the Model for Improvement framework. Stakeholders included the clinic team, patients and families, and MH providers. Statistical process control charts were used to analyse the outcome measure for percentage of screened patients with cSLE. Patient and caregiver satisfaction surveys were conducted at baseline and after screening as a balancing measure., Interventions: MH screening workflow with a referral algorithm was developed with stakeholders. Additional interventions included two MH training workshops for healthcare providers and a preclinic reminder of eligible patients for screening., Results: Over 21 months, 146 patients with cSLE completed 270 MH screens, increasing the screening rate from 15%, peaking at 100%, to a median of 56%. Sixty-six individuals (45%) reported symptoms of depression and/or anxiety on their initial screen. Of 270 screens, 44 individuals (17%) reported moderate to severe symptoms meeting the screening workflow criteria for referral to a MH service; 10% of patients screened were referred and seen by the MH service within 2-12 weeks. Patients and caregivers reported satisfaction with the MH screening process and quality of MH follow-up., Conclusion: Despite not sustainably meeting the target, MH screening rates increased in the cSLE clinic by nearly fourfold, demonstrating feasibility and acceptability. Patients expressed satisfaction with their mental health follow-up, emphasising its importance in their care., Competing Interests: Competing interests: None declared., (© Author(s) (or their employer(s)) 2024. Re-use permitted under CC BY-NC. No commercial re-use. See rights and permissions. Published by BMJ.)

Background: The transition from pediatric to adult care poses a significant health system-level challenge impeding the delivery of quality health services for youth with chronic health conditions. In Canada and globally, the transition to adult care is regarded as a top priority in adolescent health in need of readily applicable, adaptable, and relevant national metrics to evaluate and benchmark transition success across disease populations and clinical care settings. Unfortunately, existing literature fails to account for the lack of engagement from youth and caregivers in developing indicators, and its applicability across chronic conditions, primary care involvement, and health equity considerations., Objective: Our proposed study aims to establish a consensus-driven set of quality indicators for the transition to adult care that are universally applicable across physical, developmental, and mental health conditions, clinical care settings, and health jurisdictions., Methods: Using an integrated knowledge translation (iKT) approach, a panel comprising youth, caregivers, interdisciplinary health care providers, and health system leaders will be established to collaborate with our research team to ensure that the study methodology, materials, and knowledge dissemination are suitable and reflect the perspectives of youth and their families. We will then conduct an iterative 3-round Online Modified Delphi (OMD) study (n=160) to (1) compare and contrast the perspectives of youth, caregivers, health care providers, and health system leaders on quality indicators for transition; and (2) prioritize a key set of quality indicators for transition applicable across disease populations that are the most important, useful, and feasible in the Canadian context. Using the RAND/UCLA Appropriateness Method (RAM) multistage analytic approach, data from each panel and stakeholder group will be examined separately and compared to establish a key set of indicators endorsed by both panels., Results: The study is funded by the Canadian Institutes of Health Research and Physicians Services Incorporated., Conclusions: This study will produce quality indicators to evaluate and inform action equitably to improve transition from pediatric to adult care for youth and their families in Canada., International Registered Report Identifier (irrid): PRR1-10.2196/60860., (©Alene Toulany, Dmitry Khodyakov, Sarah Mooney, Lisa Stromquist, Katherine Bailey, Claire EH Barber, Michelle Batthish, Kristin Cleverley, Gina Dimitropoulos, Jan Willem Gorter, Danijela Grahovac, Ruth Grimes, Beverly Guttman, Michèle L Hébert, Tomisin John, Lisha Lo, Dorothy Luong, Laura MacGregor, Geetha Mukerji, Jacklynn Pidduck, Vjura Senthilnathan, Rayzel Shulman, Patricia Trbovich, Sarah EP Munce. Originally published in JMIR Research Protocols (https://www.researchprotocols.org), 10.09.2024.)

Background: Youth engagement refers to the collaboration between researchers and youth to produce research. Youth engagement in health research has been shown to inform effective interventions aimed at improving health outcomes. However, limited evidence has identified promising practices to meaningfully engage youth. This synthesis aims to describe youth engagement approaches, frameworks, and barriers, as well as provide both evidence-based and youth-generated recommendations for meaningful engagement., Main Body: This review occurred in two stages: 1) a narrative review of existing literature on youth engagement and 2) a Youth Advisory Council (YAC) to review and supplement findings with their perspectives, experiences, and recommendations. The terms 'youth engagement' and 'health research' were searched in Google Scholar, PubMed, Web of Science, Scopus, and PsycINFO. Articles and non-peer reviewed research works related to youth engagement in health research were included, reviewed, and summarized. The YAC met with research team members and in separate youth-only forums to complement the narrative review with their perspectives. Types of youth engagement include participation as research participants, advisors, partners, and co-investigators. Barriers to youth engagement were organized into youth- (e.g., time commitments), researcher- (e.g., attitudes towards youth engagement), organizational- (e.g., inadequate infrastructure to support youth engagement), and system-level (e.g., systemic discrimination and exclusion from research). To enhance youth engagement, recommendations focus on preparing and supporting youth by offering flexible communication approaches, mentorship opportunities, diverse and inclusive recruitment, and ensuring youth understand the commitment and benefits involved., Conclusions: To harness the potential of youth engagement, researchers need to establish an inclusive and enabling environment that fosters collaboration, trust, and valuable contributions from youth. Future research endeavors should prioritize investigating the dynamics of power-sharing between researchers and youth, assessing the impact of youth engagement on young participants, and youth-specific evaluation frameworks., (© 2024. Crown.)

Gender dysphoria (GD) and obesity share commonalities, including associations with mental health comorbidities, disordered eating, body dissatisfaction and may intensify with physical and developmental changes during adolescence. While associations of obesity and gender diversity have been identified, rates of gender diversity among adolescents with obesity remain unclear. The aim was to examine gender diversity among adolescents with obesity in a weight management programme. A single-centre cross-sectional questionnaire study was conducted. Eligible adolescents received the Gender Identity/GD Questionnaire for Adolescents and Adults (GIDYQ-AA), a validated instrument measuring gender diversity and GD. Gender identities, sexual orientations, questionnaire scores, and frequency of GD (GIDYQ-AA score <3) were determined. The relationship of GIDYQ-AA scores and BMI Z-score (BMIz) was assessed. Of 72 consenting youth, 29 assigned females (AF) and 17 assigned males (AM) completed GIDYQ-AA and demographic questions. Seventeen (59%) AF reported non-heterosexual orientations, and 6 (21%) reported non-cisgender identities. One (6%) AM reported non-cisgender identity. Two (4%) AF individuals had GD based on GIDYQ-AA scores. GIDYQ-AA scores did not correlate with BMIz. In conclusion, adolescents with obesity, particularly AF with non-heterosexual orientation, reported high rates of non-cisgender identity and GD. Routine screening for gender-related concerns in weight management settings may be warranted., (© 2024 The Authors. Clinical Obesity published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd on behalf of World Obesity Federation.)

Objective: Our objective was to characterize adolescent health and psychosocial issues in patients with childhood-onset systemic lupus erythematosus (cSLE) and evaluate demographic and disease characteristics associated with adolescent health., Methods: We retrospectively examined adolescents aged 12 to 18 years with cSLE seen at the Hospital for Sick Children meeting the American College of Rheumatology/Systemic Lupus International Collaborating Clinics classification criteria, assessed by adolescent medicine in the cSLE clinic between 2018 and 2020. Adolescent health issues were characterized using the Home, Education/Employment, Activities, Diet/Drugs, Sexuality, Suicide/mood (HEADDSS) framework. Issues were classified as presenting and/or identified; adolescent health burden was tabulated as the number of distinct adolescent issues per patient. Multiple Poisson regression models examined associations between patient and disease characteristics (age, sex, material deprivation, disease activity, disease damage, and high-dose glucocorticoid exposure) and adolescent health issues., Results: A total of 108 (60%) of 181 adolescents with cSLE were seen by adolescent medicine, with a median of 2 (interquartile range [IQR] 1-3) visits and a median of 2 (IQR 1-5) adolescent health issues during the study period. Common issues were mood (presenting in 21% vs identified in 50%), sleep (27% vs 2%), school and education (26% vs 1%), and nonadherence (23% vs 8%). Psychoeducation was provided by adolescent medicine to 54% of patients. High-dose glucocorticoids (risk ratio [RR] 1.82, 95% confidence interval [CI] 1.41-2.35, P < 0.001), material deprivation (RR 1.17, 95% CI 1.04-1.30, P = 0.007), and lower SLE Disease Activity Index scores (RR 0.95, 95% CI 0.92-0.98, P = 0.004) were associated with higher adolescent health burden., Conclusion: Adolescents with cSLE experience many adolescent issues, especially low mood. High-dose glucocorticoids and social marginalization are associated with greater adolescent health burden. This study highlights the importance of addressing adolescent health needs as part of routine care., (© 2024 American College of Rheumatology.)

Introduction: Patient engagement and integrated knowledge translation (iKT) processes improve health outcomes and care experiences through meaningful partnerships in consensus-building initiatives and research. Consensus-building is essential for engaging a diverse group of experienced knowledge users in co-developing and supporting a solution where none readily exists or is less optimal. Patients and caregivers provide invaluable insights for building consensus in decision-making around healthcare, policy and research. However, despite emerging evidence, patient engagement remains sparse within consensus-building initiatives. Specifically, our research has identified a lack of opportunity for youth living with chronic health conditions and their caregivers to participate in developing consensus on indicators/benchmarks for transition into adult care. To bridge this gap and inform our consensus-building approach with youth/caregivers, this scoping review will synthesise the extent of the literature on patient and other knowledge user engagement in consensus-building healthcare initiatives., Methods and Analysis: Following the scoping review methodology from Joanna Briggs Institute, published literature will be searched in MEDLINE, EMBASE, CINAHL and PsycINFO databases from inception to July 2023. Grey literature will be hand-searched. Two independent reviewers will determine the eligibility of articles in a two-stage process, with disagreements resolved by a third reviewer. Included studies must be consensus-building studies within the healthcare context that involve patient engagement strategies. Data from eligible studies will be extracted and charted on a standardised form. Abstracted data will be analysed quantitatively and descriptively, according to specific consensus methodologies, and patient engagement models and/or strategies., Ethics and Dissemination: Ethics approval is not required for this scoping review protocol. The review process and findings will be shared with and informed by relevant knowledge users. Dissemination of findings will also include peer-reviewed publications and conference presentations. The results will offer new insights for supporting patient engagement in consensus-building healthcare initiatives., Protocol Registration: https://osf.io/beqjr., Competing Interests: Competing interests: None declared., (© Author(s) (or their employer(s)) 2024. Re-use permitted under CC BY-NC. No commercial re-use. See rights and permissions. Published by BMJ.)

Background and Objectives: Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) posed a significant threat to adolescents' sexual and reproductive health. In this study, we examined population-level pregnancy and sexual health-related care utilization among adolescent females in Ontario, Canada during the pandemic and evaluated relationships between these outcomes and key sociodemographic characteristics., Methods: This was a population-based, repeated cross-sectional study of >630 000 female adolescents (12-19 years) during the prepandemic (January 1, 2018-February 29, 2020) and COVID-19 pandemic (March 1, 2020-December 31, 2022) periods. Primary outcome was pregnancy; secondary outcomes were contraceptive management visits, contraception prescription uptake, and sexually transmitted infection (STI) management visits. Poisson models with generalized estimating equations for clustered count data were used to model pre-COVID-19 trends and forecast expected rates during the COVID-19 period. Absolute rate differences between observed and expected outcome rates for each pandemic month were calculated overall and by urbanicity, neighborhood income, immigration status, and region., Results: During the pandemic, lower-than-expected population-level rates of adolescent pregnancy (rate ratio 0.87; 95% confidence interval [CI]:0.85-0.88), and encounters for contraceptive (rate ratio 0.82; 95% CI:0.77-0.88) and STI management (rate ratio 0.52; 95% CI:0.51-0.53) were observed. Encounter rates did not return to pre-pandemic rates by study period end, despite health system reopening. Pregnancy rates among adolescent subpopulations with the highest pre-pandemic pregnancy rates changed least during the pandemic., Conclusions: Population-level rates of adolescent pregnancy and sexual health-related care utilization were lower than expected during the COVID-19 pandemic, and below-expected care utilization rates persist. Pregnancy rates among more structurally vulnerable adolescents demonstrated less decline, suggesting exacerbation of preexisting inequities., (Copyright © 2024 by the American Academy of Pediatrics.)

Background: Studies have highlighted significant challenges associated with the transition from pediatric to adult health and social care services for youth living with childhood-acquired disabilities and their caregivers. Patient navigation has been proposed as an effective transitional care intervention. Better understanding of how patient navigation may support youth and their families during pediatric to adult care transitions is warranted., Objective: This study aims to describe the preferred adaptations of an existing web-based platform from the perspectives of youth with childhood-onset disabilities and their family caregivers to develop a web-based peer-patient navigation program, Compassionate Online Navigation to Enhance Care Transitions (CONNECT)., Methods: A qualitative descriptive design was used. Participants included youth living with childhood-acquired disabilities (16/23, 70%) and their caregivers (7/23, 30%). Semistructured interviews and focus groups were conducted, digitally recorded, and transcribed. Thematic analysis was used to analyze the data and was facilitated through NVivo software (Lumivero)., Results: Participants desired a program that incorporated (1) self-directed learning, (2) a library of reliable health and community resources, and (3) emotional and social supports. On the basis of participants' feedback, CONNECT was deemed satisfactory, as it was believed that the program would help support appropriate transition care through the provision of trusted health-related information. Participants highlighted the need for options to optimize confidentiality in their health and social care and the choice to remain anonymous to other participants., Conclusions: Web-based patient navigation programs such as CONNECT may deliver peer support that can improve the quality and experience of care for youth, and their caregivers, transitioning from pediatric to adult care through personalized support, health care monitoring, and health and social care resources. Future studies are needed to test the feasibility, acceptability, usability, use, and effectiveness of CONNECT among youth with childhood-onset disabilities., (©Kristina Marie Kokorelias, Tin-Suet Joan Lee, Mark Bayley, Emily Seto, Alene Toulany, Michelle L A Nelson, Gina Dimitropoulos, Melanie Penner, Robert Simpson, Sarah E P Munce. Originally published in JMIR Pediatrics and Parenting (https://pediatrics.jmir.org), 07.02.2024.)

Context: Youth with chronic health conditions experience challenges during their transition to adult care. Those with marginalized identities likely experience further disparities in care as they navigate structural barriers throughout transition., Objectives: This scoping review aims to identify the social and structural drivers of health (SSDOH) associated with outcomes for youth transitioning to adult care, particularly those who experience structural marginalization, including Black, Indigenous, and 2-spirit, lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer or questioning, and others youth., Data Sources: Medline, Embase, CINAHL, and PsycINFO were searched from earliest available date to May 2022., Study Selection: Two reviewers screened titles and abstracts, followed by full-text. Disagreements were resolved by a third reviewer. Primary research studying the association between SSDOH and transition outcomes were included., Data Extraction: SSDOH were subcategorized as social drivers, structural drivers, and demographic characteristics. Transition outcomes were classified into themes. Associations between SSDOH and outcomes were assessed according to their statistical significance and were categorized into significant (P < .05), nonsignificant (P > .05), and unclear significance., Results: 101 studies were included, identifying 12 social drivers (childhood environment, income, education, employment, health literacy, insurance, geographic location, language, immigration, food security, psychosocial stressors, and stigma) and 5 demographic characteristics (race and ethnicity, gender, illness type, illness severity, and comorbidity). No structural drivers were studied. Gender was significantly associated with communication, quality of life, transfer satisfaction, transfer completion, and transfer timing, and race and ethnicity with appointment keeping and transfer completion., Limitations: Studies were heterogeneous and a meta-analysis was not possible., Conclusions: Gender and race and ethnicity are associated with inequities in transition outcomes. Understanding these associations is crucial in informing transition interventions and mitigating health inequities.

Importance: Understanding the evolving characteristics of pediatric patients hospitalized for eating disorders is important to ensure that services and treatments align with patient needs., Objective: To examine temporal trends in the rates of hospitalizations for pediatric eating disorders by clinical and demographic characteristics in Ontario, Canada, over a 17-year period., Design, Setting, and Participants: This population-based, repeated, cross-sectional study used linked health administrative and demographic databases in Ontario, Canada, to identify individuals aged 5 to 17 years hospitalized with eating disorder diagnoses from April 1, 2002, to March 31, 2020. Data analyses were performed from May 2021 to June 2023., Exposure: Fiscal year (April 1-March 31) of eating disorder hospitalization., Main Outcomes and Measures: Outcomes of interest were absolute and relative changes in pediatric eating disorder hospitalization rates overall and stratified by patient sex, age groups, and eating disorder diagnostic groups., Results: Over the study period, there were 11 654 pediatric eating disorder hospitalizations, of which 5268 (45.2%) were for anorexia nervosa and 1374 (11.8%) were for bulimia nervosa. There were a total of 10 648 hospitalizations (91.4%) among female patients, and the median (IQR) age was 15.0 (14-0-16.0) years. Hospitalization rates increased 139% from 2002 to 2019, from 2.0 per 10 000 population to 4.8 per 10 000 population. The largest relative changes were observed among male patients (416%; from 0.2 per 10 000 population to 1.1 per 10 000 population), individuals aged 12 to 14 years (196%; from 2.2 per 10 000 population to 6.6 per 10 000 population), and individuals with eating disorders other than anorexia or bulimia nervosa (255%; from 0.6 per 10 000 population to 2.1 per 10 000 population). Male patients, younger adolescents, and individuals with other eating disorders also represented larger proportions of hospitalizations by fiscal 2019., Conclusions and Relevance: In this cross-sectional study of eating disorder hospitalizations, pediatric hospitalizations increased over time, particularly among populations traditionally considered atypical. Existing eating disorder programs must adapt to accommodate changing patient presentations and increased volumes to ensure effective care delivery.

Objective: We sought to evaluate the relationship between social determinants of health and physician-based mental healthcare utilization and virtual care use among children and adolescents in Ontario, Canada, during the COVID-19 pandemic., Methods: This population-based repeated cross-sectional study of children and adolescents (3-17 years; N  = 2.5 million) used linked health and demographic administrative data in Ontario, Canada (2017-2021). Multivariable Poisson regressions with generalized estimating equations compared rates of outpatient physician-based mental healthcare use during the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic with expected rates based on pre-COVID patterns. Analyses were conducted by socioeconomic status (material deprivation quintiles of the Ontario Marginalization index), urban/rural region of residence, and immigration status., Results: Overall, pediatric physician-based mental healthcare visits were 5% lower than expected (rate ratio [RR] = 0.95, 95% confidence interval [CI], 0.92 to 0.98) among those living in the most deprived areas in the first year of the pandemic, compared with the least deprived with 4% higher than expected rates (RR = 1.04, 95% CI, 1.02 to 1.06). There were no differences in overall observed and expected visit rates by region of residence. Immigrants had 14% to 26% higher visit rates compared with expected from July 2020 to February 2021, whereas refugees had similarly observed and expected rates. Virtual care use was approximately 65% among refugees, compared with 70% for all strata., Conclusion: During the first year of the pandemic, pediatric physician-based mental healthcare utilization was higher among immigrants and lower than expected among those with lower socioeconomic status. Refugees had the lowest use of virtual care. Further work is needed to understand whether these differences reflect issues in access to care or the need to help inform ongoing pandemic recovery planning., Competing Interests: Declaration of Conflicts of InterestsThe authors declared the following potential conflicts of interest with respect to the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article: N. Saunders reported receiving personal fees from the Archives of Diseases in Childhood, grants from the Canadian Institutes for Health Research and the Ontario Ministry of Health, grants from the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health, and grants from The Hospital for Sick Children outside the submitted work. S. Vigod reported receiving royalties from UpToDate Inc. for authorship of materials related to depression and pregnancy unrelated to the submitted work. No other disclosures were reported.

Objective: To assess physician-based mental health care utilization during the COVID-19 pandemic among children and adolescents new to care and those already engaged with mental health services, and to evaluate differences by sociodemographic factors., Study Design: We performed a population-based repeated cross-sectional study using linked health and administrative databases in Ontario, Canada among all children and adolescents 3-17 years. We examined outpatient visit rates per 1,000 population for mental health concerns for those new to care (no physician-based mental healthcare for ≥1 year) and those with continuing care needs (any physician-based mental healthcare <1 year) following onset of the pandemic., Results: Among ~2.5 million children and adolescents (48.7% female, mean age 10.1 ± 4.3 years), expected monthly mental health outpatient visits were 1.5/1,000 for those new to mental health care and 5.4/1,000 for those already engaged in care. Following onset of the pandemic, visit rates for both groups were above expected [adjusted rate ratio (aRR) 1.22, 95% CI 1.17, 1.27; aRR 1.10, 95% CI 1.07, 1.12] for new and continuing care, respectively. The greatest increase above expected was among females (new: aRR 1.33, 95% CI 1.25, 1.42; continuing: aRR 1.22 95% CI 1.17, 1.26) and adolescents ages 13-17 years (new: aRR 1.31, 95% CI 1.27, 1.34; continuing: aRR 1.15 95% CI 1.13, 1.17). Mood and anxiety concerns were prominent among those new to care., Conclusion: In the 18 months following onset of the pandemic, outpatient mental health care utilization increased for those with new and continuing care needs, especially among females and adolescents., Competing Interests: The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest., (Copyright © 2023 Toulany, Vigod, Kurdyak, Stukel, Strauss, Fu, Guttmann, Guan, Cohen, Chiu, Hepburn, Moran, Gardner, Cappelli, Sundar and Saunders.)

Background: Increased rates of pediatric eating disorders have been observed during the COVID-19 pandemic, but little is known about trends among adults. We aimed to evaluate rates of emergency department visits and hospital admissions for eating disorders among adolescents and adults during the pandemic., Methods: We conducted a population-based, repeated cross-sectional study using linked health administrative data for Ontario residents aged 10-105 years during the prepandemic (Jan. 1, 2017, to Feb. 29, 2020) and pandemic (Mar. 1, 2020, to Aug. 31, 2022) periods. We evaluated monthly rates of emergency department visits and hospital admissions for eating disorders, stratified by age., Results: Compared with expected rates derived from the prepandemic period, emergency department visits for eating disorders increased during the pandemic among adolescents aged 10-17 years (7.38 v. 3.33 per 100 000; incidence rate ratio [IRR] 2.21, 95% confidence interval [CI] 2.17-2.26), young adults aged 18-26 years (2.79 v. 2.46 per 100 000; IRR 1.13, 95% CI 1.10-1.16) and older adults aged 41-105 years (0.14 v. 0.11 per 100 000; IRR 1.15, 95% CI 1.07-1.24). Hospital admissions for eating disorders increased during the pandemic for adolescents (8.82 v. 5.74 per 100 000; IRR 1.54, 95% CI 1.54-1.54) but decreased for all adult age groups, especially older adults aged 41-105 years (0.21 v. 0.30 per 100 000; IRR 0.72, 95% CI 0.64-0.80)., Interpretation: Emergency department visits for eating disorders increased among adolescents, young adults and older adults during the pandemic, but hospital admissions increased only for adolescents and decreased for all adult groups. Differential rates of acute care use for eating disorders by age have important implications for allocation of inpatient mental health resources., Competing Interests: Competing interests: Natasha Saunders reports receiving personal fees from The BMJ Group’s Archives of Diseases in Childhood and grants from the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR), the Ontario Ministry of Health, the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health and The Hospital for Sick Children. Astrid Guttmann reports funding from CIHR. No other competing interests were reported., (© 2023 CMA Impact Inc. or its licensors.)

Purpose: To measure trends in the rates and costs of hospitalizations over a 15-year period among young adults with physical and/or psychiatric disorders., Methods: This population-based, repeated cross-sectional study identified all 18- to 26- year-olds hospitalized in Ontario, Canada from April 1, 2003 and March 31, 2018 (fiscal years 2003-2017). Using discharge diagnoses, we assigned hospitalizations to one of four categories: 1) psychiatric disorder only; 2) primary psychiatric disorder with comorbid physical illness; 3) primary physical with comorbid psychiatric disorder; and 4) physical illness only. We compared health service utilization and changes in rates of hospitalizations over time using restricted cubic spline regression. Secondary outcome measures included change in hospital costs for each hospitalization category over the study period., Results: Of 1,076,951 hospitalizations in young adults (73.7% female), 195,726 (18.2%) had a psychiatric disorder (either primary or comorbid). There were 129,676 hospitalizations (12.0%) with psychiatric disorders only, 36,287 (3.4%) with primary psychiatric and comorbid physical disorders, 29,763 (2.8%) with primary physical and comorbid psychiatric disorders, and 881,225 (81.8%) with physical disorders only. Rates of hospitalization for psychiatric disorders only increased 81% from 4.32 to 7.84/1,000 population, and those with physical health disorders with comorbid psychiatric disorders increased 172% from 0.47 to 1.28/1,000 population. Substance-related disorders were the most common comorbid psychiatric disorders among youth hospitalized for physical illness and increased 260% from 0.9 to 3.3/1,000 population., Discussion: Hospitalizations among young adults with primary and comorbid psychiatric disorders have increased significantly over the past 15 years. Health system resources should be adequately directed to meet the shifting and complex needs of hospitalized young adults., (Copyright © 2023 Society for Adolescent Health and Medicine. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

Background: Youth have reported worsening mental health during the COVID-19 pandemic. We sought to evaluate rates of pediatric acute care visits for self-harm during the pandemic according to age, sex and mental health service use., Methods: We conducted a population-based, repeated cross-sectional study using linked health administrative data sets to measure monthly rates of emergency department visits and hospital admissions for self-harm among youth aged 10-17 years between Jan. 1, 2017, and June 30, 2022, in Ontario, Canada. We modelled expected rates of acute care visits for self-harm after the pandemic onset based on prepandemic rates. We reported relative differences between observed and expected monthly rates overall and by age group (10-13 yr and 14-17 yr), sex and mental health service use (new and continuing)., Results: In this population of about 1.3 million children and adolescents, rates of acute care visits for self-harm during the pandemic were higher than expected for emergency department visits (0.27/1000 population v. 0.21/1000 population; adjusted rate ratio [RR] 1.29, 95% confidence interval [CI] 1.19-1.39) and hospital admissions (0.74/10 000 population v. 0.43/10 000 population, adjusted RR 1.72, 95% CI 1.46-2.03). This increase was primarily observed among females. Rates of emergency department visits and hospital admissions for self-harm were higher than expected for both those aged 10-13 years and those aged 14-17 years, as well as for both those new to the mental health system and those already engaged in care., Interpretation: Rates of acute care visits for self-harm among children and adolescents were higher than expected during the first 2 and a half years of the COVID-19 pandemic, particularly among females. These findings support the need for accessible and intensive prevention efforts and mental health supports in this population., Competing Interests: Competing interests: Rachel Mitchell reports receiving grants from the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention, the TD Pooler Fund and the Sunnybrook Foundation, as well as an Academic Scholar Award from the Department of Psychiatry at Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre and the University of Toronto and an honourarium from Medscape. Eyal Cohen is a member of the Committee to Evaluate Drugs. Rachel Strauss reports consulting fees from Canadian Doctors for Prevention from Guns. Simone Vigod reports receiving authorship royalties from UpToDate. Kimberly Moran receives salary support from the Ontario College of Family Physicians. Astrid Guttmann reports receiving grants from the Canadian Institutes for Health Research. Paul Kurdyak is Vice President, Clinical at the Mental Health and Addictions Centre of Excellence at Ontario Health. Natasha Saunders reports receiving grants from the Canadian Institutes for Health Research, the Ontario Ministry of Health, the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health and The Hospital for Sick Children, as well as personal fees from the BMJ Group for her role as associate editor for the Archives of Diseases in Childhood. She is a member of the Canadian Paediatric Society Mental Health and Developmental Disabilities committee. No other competing interests were declared., (© 2023 CMA Impact Inc. or its licensors.)

Objective: To examine physician factors associated with practice-level uptake of virtual mental healthcare for children and adolescents., Design, Setting and Participants: A population-based data linkage study of a cohort of all physicians (n=12 054) providing outpatient mental healthcare to children and adolescents (aged 3-17 years, n=303 185) in a single-payer provincial health system in Ontario, Canada from 1 July 2020 to 31 July 2021., Exposures: Physician characteristics including gender, age, specialty, location of training, practice region, practice size and overall and mental health practice size., Main Outcomes: Practice-level proportion of outpatient virtual care provided: (1) mostly in-person (<25% virtual care), (2) hybrid (25%-99% virtual care) or (3) exclusively virtual (100% virtual care). Multinomial logistic regression models tested the association between practice-level virtual care provided and physician characteristics., Results: Among physicians, 1589 (13.2%) provided mostly in-person mental healthcare with 8714 (67.8%) providing hybrid care, and 2291 (19.0%) providing exclusively virtual care. The provision of exclusive virtual care (vs mostly in-person) was associated with female sex (adjusted OR (aOR) 1.97, 95% CI 1.70 to 2.27 (ref: male)), foreign training (aOR 1.27, 95% CI 1.07 to 1.50 (ref: Canadian-trained)), family physicians (aOR 2.05, 95% CI 1.56 to 2.69 (ref: psychiatrist)) and reversely associated with large practice size (aOR 0.32, 95% CI 0.25 to 0.40 (ref smallest quintile)). Mostly in-person care was associated with older age physicians (71+ years) and practice outside the Toronto region., Conclusions and Relevance: In a single-payer universal healthcare system that remunerates physicians using the same fee structure for in-person and virtual outpatient care, there is heterogeneity in utilisation of virtual care that is associated with provider factors. This practice variation, with limited evidence on effectiveness and appropriate contexts for virtual care use, suggests there may be opportunity for further outcomes research and guidance on appropriate context for paediatric virtual mental healthcare delivery., Competing Interests: Competing interests: NRS reported receiving personal fees from the Archives of Diseases in Childhood, grants from the Canadian Institutes for Health Research and the Ontario Ministry of Health, grants from the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health and grants from The Hospital for Sick Children outside the submitted work. SV reported receiving royalties from UpToDate for authorship of materials related to depression and pregnancy outside the submitted work. No other disclosures were reported., (© Author(s) (or their employer(s)) 2023. Re-use permitted under CC BY-NC. No commercial re-use. See rights and permissions. Published by BMJ.)

This research examined longitudinal associations between youth physical-mental multimorbidity and psychological distress before and during the COVID-19 pandemic; assessed the contextual impact of the pandemic on these associations; and, investigated potential moderating factors. The Multimorbidity in Youth across the Life-course, an ongoing study of youth aged 2-16 years (mean 9.4; 46.9% female) with physical illness, was used as the sampling frame for this COVID-19 sub-study, in which 147 parent-youth dyads participated. Psychological distress was measured using the Kessler-6 (K6). Multimorbidity was associated with higher pre-pandemic, but not with intra-pandemic distress. Disability moderated pre-pandemic distress-multimorbidity was associated with higher K6 among youth with high disability, but not among youth with low disability. Age moderated intra-pandemic distress-multimorbidity was associated with higher K6 in older youth, but not among younger youth., (© 2023. The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer Science+Business Media, LLC, part of Springer Nature.)

A hallmark of delivering quality adolescent health care services is the provision of confidential care. Key tenets when providing confidential care for adolescents include time alone with a health care provider, maintaining the privacy of health information, and securing informed consent for services without permission from a parent, guardian, or caregiver. While confidentiality is a basic principle for all health care encounters regardless of age, the unique considerations for capable adolescent patients are not always realized or appreciated. By ensuring appropriate quantity and quality of confidential care for adolescents, clinicians are better equipped to elicit a comprehensive history and physical examination, while empowering the adolescent involved to develop agency, autonomy, trust, and responsibility for their own health care decision-making and management., Competing Interests: All authors: No reported conflicts of interest., (© Canadian Paediatric Society 2023. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the Canadian Paediatric Society. All rights reserved. For permissions, please e-mail: journals.permissions@oup.com.)

Introduction: The number of young adults (youth) living with childhood-onset disabilities, and requiring transitional support to adult community and rehabilitation services, is increasing. We explored facilitators and barriers to accessing and sustaining community and rehabilitation services during the transition from pediatric to adult care., Methods: A qualitative descriptive study was conducted in Ontario, Canada. Data were collected through interviews with youth ( n = 11) and family caregivers ( n = 7). The data were coded and analyzed using thematic analysis., Results: Youth and caregivers face many types of transitions from pediatric to adult community and rehabilitation services, e.g., those related to education, living arrangements, and employment. This transition is marked by feelings of isolation. Supportive social networks, continuity of care (i.e., same care providers), and advocacy all contribute to positive experiences. Lack of knowledge about resources, changing parental involvement without preparation, and a lack of system responses to evolving needs were barriers to positive transitions. Financial circumstances were described as either a barrier or facilitator to service access., Conclusions: This study demonstrated that continuity of care, support from providers, and social networks all contribute markedly to the positive experience of transitioning from pediatric to adult services for individuals with childhood-onset disabilities and family caregivers. Future transitional interventions should incorporate these considerations.

Background: COVID-19 mitigation measures, including closures of schools and recreational facilities and alterations in eating behaviours and physical activity, may impact weight., Objective: To examine changes in body weight and body mass index (BMI) in children and adolescents with obesity participating in an obesity treatment program before and during the COVID-19 pandemic in Ontario, Canada., Methods: Body weight and BMI at baseline and 6 months were recorded for the 'historic' cohort (females = 34, males = 21) before the pandemic (November 1, 2018, to March 18, 2020) and for the 'pandemic' cohort (females = 30, males = 30) during the pandemic (March 19, 2020 to July 31, 2021). Analyses were adjusted for baseline weight/BMI, age, and ON-Marg score, a measure of the social determinants of health., Results: In males, body weight (98.29 versus 89.28 kg, p < 0.001) and BMI (36.46 versus 34.85 kg/m 2 , p = 0.027) were greater in the pandemic compared with historic cohort. In females, body weight (p = 0.769) and BMI (p = 0.548) were not different between the two cohorts., Conclusion: The COVID-19 pandemic may have diminished the health impacts of a weight management program, particularly in males, leading to increased body weight and BMI., (© 2022 World Obesity Federation.)

Background: We developed a multicomponent, family-based intervention for young children with obesity consisting of parent group sessions, home nursing visits, and multidisciplinary clinical encounters. Our objective was to assess intervention feasibility, acceptability, and implementation. Methods: From 2017 to 2020, we conducted a multiple methods study in the obesity management clinic at a tertiary children's hospital (Toronto, Canada). We included 1-6 year olds with a body mass index ≥97th percentile and their parents; we also included health care providers (HCPs) who delivered the intervention. To assess feasibility, we performed a pilot randomized controlled trial (RCT) comparing the intervention to usual care. To explore acceptability, we conducted parent focus groups. To explore implementation, we examined contextual factors with HCPs using the Consolidated Framework for Implementation Research. Results: There was a high level of ineligibility ( n  = 34/61) for the pilot RCT. Over 21 months, 11 parent-child dyads were recruited; of 6 randomized to the intervention, 3 did not participate in group sessions or home visits. In focus groups, themes identified by parents ( n  = 8) related to information provided at referral; fit between the intervention and patient needs; parental gains from participating in the intervention; and feasibility of group sessions. HCPs ( n  = 10) identified contextual factors that were positively and negatively associated with intervention implementation. Conclusions: We encountered challenges related to intervention feasibility, acceptability, and implementation. Lessons learned from this study will inform the next iteration of our intervention and are relevant to intervention development and implementation for young children with obesity. Clinical Trial Registration number: NCT03219658.

Youth with complex health care needs, defined as those requiring specialized health care and services for physical, developmental, and/or mental health conditions, are often cared for by paediatricians and paediatric specialists. In Canada, the age at which provincial/territorial funders mandate the transfer of paediatric care to adult services varies, ranging between 16 and 19 years. The current configuration of distinct paediatric and adult care service boundaries is fragmentary, raising barriers to continuity of care during an already vulnerable developmental period. For youth, the lack of care integration across sectors can negatively impact health engagement and jeopardize health outcomes into adulthood. To address these barriers and improve transition outcomes, paediatric and adult care providers, as well as family physicians and other community partners, must collaborate in meaningful ways to develop system-based strategies that streamline and safeguard care for youth transitioning to adult services across tertiary, community, and primary care settings. Flexible age cut-offs for transfer to adult care are recommended, along with considering each youth's developmental stage and capacity as well as patient and family needs and circumstances. Specialized training and education in transitional care issues are needed to build capacity and ensure that health care providers across diverse disciplines and settings are better equipped to accept and care for young people with complex health care needs., (© Canadian Paediatric Society 2022. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the Canadian Paediatric Society. All rights reserved. For permissions, please e-mail: journals.permissions@oup.com.)

Les jeunes qui ont des besoins de santé complexes, définis comme ceux qui nécessitent des soins et services spécialisés en raison d'affections physiques, développementales ou mentales, sont souvent traités par des pédiatres et autres spécialistes en pédiatrie. Au Canada, l'âge auquel les bailleurs de fonds provinciaux et territoriaux exigent le transfert des soins pédiatriques aux soins pour adultes varie entre 16 et 19 ans. La délimitation actuelle entre les services de santé pédiatriques et aux adultes est fragmentaire, ce qui entrave la continuité des soins pendant une période déjà vulnérable du développement. Le peu d'intégration des soins entre les domaines peut nuire à l'engagement des jeunes en matière de santé et compromettre leur santé à l'âge adulte. Pour renverser ces obstacles et améliorer les résultats de la transition, les dispensateurs de soins pédiatriques et de soins aux adultes, de même que les médecins de famille et d'autres partenaires communautaires, doivent collaborer de manière satisfaisante à l'élaboration de stratégies systémiques qui rationalisent et préservent les soins aux jeunes en transition vers des soins aux adultes en milieu tertiaire, communautaire et primaire. Il est recommandé de privilégier des limites d'âge flexibles pour effectuer cette transition vers les soins aux adultes et de tenir compte de la phase de développement et de l'aptitude de chaque jeune, ainsi que des besoins et de la situation de chaque patient et de chaque famille. Une formation et un enseignement spécialisés sur les enjeux liés aux soins de transition s'imposent pour renforcer les capacités et s'assurer que les professionnels de la santé des diverses disciplines et des divers milieux soient mieux outillés pour accepter et traiter les jeunes qui ont des besoins de santé complexes., (© Société canadienne de pédiatrie 2022. Publié par Oxford University Press pour le compte de la Société canadienne de pédiatrie. Tous droits réservés. Pour obtenir une autorisation, écrivez à journals.permissions@oup.com.)

Background and Objective: Transition from pediatric to adult care is associated with adverse health outcomes for many adolescents with chronic illness. We identified quality indicators for transition to adult care that are broadly applicable across chronic illnesses and health systems., Methods: Medline, Embase, and the Cumulative Index to Nursing and Allied Health Literature were searched, covering earliest available date to July 2021. The Gray Matters framework was used to search gray literature. Two independent reviewers screened articles by title and abstract, followed by full-text review. Disagreements were resolved by a third reviewer. Studies were included that identified quality indicators developed via consensus-building methods. Indicators were organized into a framework categorized by illness specificity, level of care, Donabedian model, and Institute of Medicine quality domain. Appraisal of Guidelines for Research and Evaluation tool was used for critical appraisal., Results: The search identified 4581 articles, of which 321 underwent full-text review. Eight peer-reviewed studies and 1 clinical guideline were included, identifying 169 quality indicators for transition. Of these, 56% were illness specific, 43% were at the patient level of care, 44% related to transition processes, and 51% were patient centered and 0% equity focused. Common indicator themes included education (12%), continuity of care (8%), satisfaction (8%), and self-management/self-efficacy (7%). The study was limited by quality indicators developed through consensus-building methodology., Conclusions: Although most quality indicators for transition were patient-centered outcomes, few were informed by youth and parents/caregivers, and none focused on equity. Further work is needed to prioritize quality indicators across chronic illness populations while engaging youth and parents/caregivers in the process.

Objective: To describe the characteristics of children and adolescents receiving tele-mental health services in Ontario, Canada and examine access to a psychiatrist, in-person or via tele-mental health services, following a mental health and addictions (MHA)-related emergency department (ED) visit or hospitalization., Method: Using linked health and administrative data, we described two cohorts: (1) children and adolescents (1-18 years) who used a provincial tele-mental health programme from January 1, 2013 to March 31, 2017, comparing their MHA-related service use (outpatient, ED, hospitalization) in the 1 year prior to and the 1 year following initial consultation; (2) children and adolescents with high mental health service needs, defined as those with an incident MHA-related ED visit or hospitalization between January 1, 2013 and December 31, 2016, examining their 1-year follow-up with telemedicine and other health care utilization., Results: In the first cohort, 7,216 children and adolescents (mean age 11.8 [±3.8] years) received tele-mental health services. The proportion of MHA-related ED visits [15.1% pre vs. 12.6% post (test statistic 23.57, P  < 0.001)] or hospitalizations [10.2% pre vs. 8.7% post (test statistic 11.96, P  < 0.001)] declined in the year following tele-mental health consultation, while local psychiatry visits increased [8.4% pre vs. 17.0% post (test statistic 298.69, P  < 0.001)]. In the second cohort ( n  = 84,033), only 1.5% received tele-mental health services, 40.7% saw a psychiatrist in-person, and 32.5% received no MHA-related outpatient care in follow-up., Conclusions: Tele-mental health services were rarely used in Ontario, even among high-needs children and adolescents, despite their association with increased access to care and less need for acute mental health care.

Background: This qualitative study explored the dating and sexual health attitudes and behaviours among adolescents with severe obesity (body mass index [BMI] > 99th%) attending a multidisciplinary weight-management programme., Methods: Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 19 participants (12 females, 7 males; M age  = 16.8) and analysed through reflective thematic analysis., Results: Participants described polarized dating behaviours in which dating and sexual relationships were either avoided due to this not being a priority, lack of time, feared rejection, and/or body size as perceived barrier or in contrast, when approached, involved greater sexual risk., Conclusions: These findings have numerous implications including the need for increased education on the romantic developmental challenges faced by adolescents with severe obesity, the importance of ongoing screening of high-risk sexual behaviours and body dissatisfaction from frontline care providers, and the ability to support referrals to psychosocial services when appropriate., (© 2021 The Authors. Child: Care, Health and Development published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.)

Importance: Public health measures to reduce the spread of COVID-19 have heightened distress among children and adolescents and contributed to a shift in delivery of mental health care services., Objectives: To measure and compare physician-based outpatient mental health care utilization before and during the COVID-19 pandemic and quantify the extent of uptake of virtual care delivery., Design, Setting, and Participants: Population-based repeated cross-sectional study using linked health and administrative databases in Ontario, Canada. All individuals aged 3 to 17 years residing in Ontario from January 1, 2017, to February 28, 2021., Exposures: Pre-COVID-19 period from January 1, 2017, to February 29, 2020, and post-COVID-19 onset from March 1, 2020, to February 28, 2021., Main Outcomes and Measures: Physician-based outpatient weekly visit rates per 1000 population for mental health diagnoses overall and stratified by age group, sex, and mental health diagnostic grouping and proportion of virtual visits. Poisson generalized estimating equations were used to model 3-year pre-COVID-19 trends and forecast expected trends post-COVID-19 onset and estimate the change in visit rates before and after the onset of COVID-19. The weekly proportions of virtual visits were calculated., Results: In a population of almost 2.5 million children and adolescents (48.7% female; mean [SD] age, 10.1 [4.3] years), the weekly rate of mental health outpatient visits was 6.9 per 1000 population. Following the pandemic onset, visit rates declined rapidly to below expected (adjusted relative rate [aRR], 0.81; 95% CI, 0.79-0.82) in April 2020 followed by a growth to above expected (aRR, 1.07; 95% CI, 1.04-1.09) by July 2020 and sustained at 10% to 15% above expected as of February 2021. Adolescent female individuals had the greatest increase in visit rates relative to expected by the end of the study (aRR, 1.26; 95% CI, 1.25-1.28). Virtual care accounted for 5.0 visits per 1000 population (72.5%) of mental health visits over the study period, with a peak of 5.3 visits per 1000 population (90.1%) (April 2020) and leveling off to approximately 70% in the latter months., Conclusions and Relevance: Physician-based outpatient mental health care in Ontario increased during the pandemic, accompanied by a large, rapid shift to virtual care. There was a disproportionate increase in use of mental health care services among adolescent female individuals. System-level planning to address the increasing capacity needs and to monitor quality of care with such large shifts is warranted.

Objectives: With the increased prevalence of childhood-onset inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), there is a greater need for a planned transition process for adolescents and young adults (AYA). The Canadian IBD Transition Network and Crohn's and Colitis Canada joined in collaborative efforts to describe a set of care consensus statements to provide a framework for transitioning AYA from pediatric to adult care., Methods: Consensus statements were drafted after focus group meetings and literature reviews. An expert panel consisting of 20 IBD physicians, nurses, surgeon, adolescent medicine physician, as well as patient and caregiver representatives met, discussed and systematically voted. The consensus was reached when greater than 75% of members voted in agreement. When greater than 75% of members rated strong support, the statement was rendered a strong recommendation, suggesting that a clinician should implement the statement for all or most of their clinical practice., Results: The Canadian expert panel generated 15 consensus statements (9 strong and 6 weak recommendations). Areas of focus of the statements included: transition program implementation, key stakeholders, areas of potential need and gaps in the research., Conclusions: These consensus statements provide a framework for the transition process. The quality of evidence for these statements was generally low, highlighting the need for further controlled studies to investigate and better define effective strategies for transition in pediatric to adult IBD care., (© The Author(s) 2022. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the Canadian Association of Gastroenterology.)

Introduction: Narcolepsy, characterized by excessive daytime sleepiness, is a debilitating lifelong sleep disorder for which there is no cure. Current pharmacological and nonpharmacological treatments directed toward symptom management may be suboptimal. This qualitative study explores the perspective of adolescents on therapeutic interventions for narcolepsy., Methods: Semi-structured interviews with adolescents with narcolepsy were conducted from May to August 2019 at The Hospital for Sick Children in Toronto, Canada. Qualitative thematic analysis was utilized to generate themes emerging from the data., Results: Eighteen adolescents with narcolepsy (age range = 10-17, mean age = 14.4 ± 2.0 years, 72% male) participated and 56% had cataplexy. Four prominent themes arose regarding therapeutic interventions for narcolepsy. Firstly, participants described that pharmacotherapy was moderately effective but did not fully relieve symptoms associated with narcolepsy. Secondly, while medications are the first line treatment for narcolepsy, many participants reported frustration regarding medication dependence and side effects. Thirdly, nonpharmacological strategies including scheduled sleep times and exercise were accepted and often employed. Lastly, adolescents desired more psychosocial support to address mental health sequelae of narcolepsy that were not fully managed by current treatment modalities., Conclusions: Medications were perceived as moderately effective for managing narcolepsy but almost all participants expressed concerns with taking medications due to side effects. Adolescents valued the importance of more holistic care for their narcolepsy treatment such as psychosocial support and nonpharmacological modalities. Further anticipatory guidance regarding pharmacological side effect profiles and better integration with nonpharmacological modalities are needed to improve disease control in adolescent patients.

Purpose: Anecdotal reports suggest a significant increase in acute presentations of eating disorders among children and adolescents. Our objective was to compare the rates of emergency department visits and hospitalizations for pediatric eating disorders before and during the first 10 months of the COVID-19 pandemic., Methods: Using linked health administrative databases, we conducted a population-based repeated cross-sectional study of emergency department visits and hospitalizations for eating disorders among all children and adolescents aged 3-17 years, residing in Ontario, Canada. We defined the pre-COVID period from January 1, 2017, to February 29, 2020, and the post-COVID period from March 1, 2020, to December 26, 2020. Poisson generalized estimating equations were used to model 3-year pre-COVID trends to predict expected post-COVID trends and estimate the relative change from expected rates., Results: In our population of almost 2.5 million children and adolescents, acute care visits for eating disorders increased immediately after the onset of the pandemic, reaching a 4-week peak annualized rate of 34.6 (emergency department visits) and 43.2 per 100,000 population (hospitalizations) in October 2020. Overall, we observed a 66% (adjusted relative rate: 1.66, 95% confidence interval: 1.41-1.96) and 37% (adjusted relative rate: 1.37, 95% confidence interval: 1.25-1.50) increase in risk for emergency department visit and hospitalization, respectively., Conclusions: Acute care visits for pediatric eating disorders increased significantly in Ontario after the onset of COVID-19 pandemic and remained well above expected levels during the first 10 months of the pandemic. Further research is needed to understand the social and neurobiological mechanisms underlying the observed changes in health system utilization., (Copyright © 2021 Society for Adolescent Health and Medicine. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

Background: Adolescents with severe obesity and comorbid mental health issues are the most resistant to traditional weight management approaches and have poor treatment outcomes. Our objective was to implement and evaluate a pilot day hospital treatment program for adolescents with severe obesity, or risk for severe obesity, and significant mental health comorbidities. Methods: This was a prospective cohort study of adolescents 12-18 years of age with severe obesity (BMI >99th percentile), or at risk for severe obesity, and comorbid mental health issues. The intervention, focused on healthy lifestyle and mental health support, was implemented within an existing psychiatric day hospital at a pediatric quaternary care hospital. Anthropometric and mental health measures were analyzed pre- and postintervention. Results: Thirty-two adolescents with a mean age of 14.9 years [standard deviation (SD) 1.6] participated in the pilot integrative day hospital program for a mean duration of 5.2 months (SD 2.3). Eleven participants had primary severe obesity and comorbid mental health conditions (obesity subgroup) and 21 participants had primary mental illness and were at risk for obesity (psychiatry subgroup). We did not observe a significant difference between BMI pre- and postprogram among adolescents in both subgroups. In other words, adolescents in both subgroups achieved weight maintenance. Fear in losing control of overeating and/or being seen by others when eating decreased significantly in the obesity subgroup [mean difference (MD) 0.99; 95% confidence interval (CI): 0.27 to 1.71]. There was a significant decrease in participant-reported depression symptom severity, both overall and within program subgroups. Quality-of-life scores of study participants improved significantly within the obesity subgroup (MD -12.31; 95% CI: -21.69 to -2.93), but not within the psychiatry subgroup (MD -6.35; 95% CI: -13.37 to 0.67). Conclusions and Implications: A day hospital model of care may result in weight maintenance, decreased eating concerns, and improved mental health in adolescents with severe obesity or risk for severe obesity, and significant mental health comorbidities.

Introduction: Bariatric surgery, an established weight-loss tool, may be offered to some adolescents with severe obesity. However, few studies explore adolescents' postoperative experiences beyond physical and metabolic outcomes and quality-of-life measures., Methods: Between 2016 and 2021, 45 semi-structured interviews were conducted with adolescents (16-20 years) at 6 months (N = 15), 12 months (N = 15), and 24 months (N = 15) following bariatric surgery. A deductive thematic analysis framework was applied by two independent coders (Cronbach's α = 0.84). Themes were identified and refined iteratively, and discrepancies were resolved through discussion., Results: Five major themes emerged related to: (1) weight-loss expectations vs. reality, (2) social landscape, (3) body image, (4) eating and moving, and (5) challenges for long-term success. The pace of and satisfaction with weight loss and side effects was heterogenous among participants, with most changes occurring early and stabilizing by 24 months. Adolescents adapted over time to their new social landscapes (e.g., relationships) and reported improved body image and confidence, yet persistently struggled to reconcile their internal identity with evolving external perceptions and discomfort with new attention. Participants experienced changes to lifestyle routines after surgery (e.g., eating, moving, habits), which introduced distress at 6 months but resolved over time. Life transitions in early adulthood (e.g., moving away, university/college, employment), concurrent with their evolving and increasing autonomy, physical, social, and financial independence, imposed unexpected challenges to postoperative routines and support systems. Participants unanimously reaffirmed that bariatric surgery is a lifelong journey and that they were committed to long-term success., Conclusion: Our findings provide insight into optimizing adolescent selection for bariatric surgery and perioperative support. Specifically, important life transitions during this developmental period impact postoperative experiences and outcomes and adolescents may benefit from postoperative counseling focused on managing weight-loss expectations and adapting to evolving nutritional needs and changing social circumstances., (© 2021. The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer Nature Limited.)

Background: The extent to which heightened distress during the COVID-19 pandemic translated to increases in severe mental health outcomes is unknown. We examined trends in psychiatric presentations to acute care settings in the first 12 months after onset of the pandemic., Methods: This was a trends analysis of administrative population data in Ontario, Canada. We examined rates of hospitalizations and emergency department visits for mental health diagnoses overall and stratified by sex, age and diagnostic grouping (e.g., mood disorders, anxiety disorders, psychotic disorders), as well as visits for intentional self-injury for people aged 10 to 105 years, from January 2019 to March 2021. We used Joinpoint regression to identify significant inflection points after the onset of the pandemic in March 2020., Results: Among the 12 968 100 people included in our analysis, rates of mental health-related hospitalizations and emergency department visits declined immediately after the onset of the pandemic (peak overall decline of 30% [hospitalizations] and 37% [emergency department visits] compared to April 2019) and returned to near prepandemic levels by March 2021. Compared to April 2019, visits for intentional self-injury declined by 33% and remained below prepandemic levels until March 2021. We observed the largest declines in service use among adolescents aged 14 to 17 years (55% decline in hospitalizations, 58% decline in emergency department visits) and 10 to 13 years (56% decline in self-injury), and for those with substance-related disorders (33% decline in emergency department visits) and anxiety disorders (61% decline in hospitalizations)., Interpretation: Contrary to expectations, the abrupt decline in acute mental health service use immediately after the onset of the pandemic and the return to near prepandemic levels that we observed suggest that changes and stressors in the first 12 months of the pandemic did not translate to increased service use. Continued surveillance of acute mental health service use is warranted., Competing Interests: Competing interests: Natasha Saunders reports receiving an editorial honorarium from Archives of Diseases in Childhood and an honorarium from the M.S.I. Foundation, outside the submitted work. Simone Vigod reports receiving royalties from Up To Date, outside the submitted work., (© 2021 CMA Joule Inc. or its licensors.)

Introduction: Transition from paediatric to adult care is a complex process, which poses significant challenges for adolescents with chronic physical and mental illnesses. For many, transfer to adult care is associated with poor health and psychosocial outcomes. Quality indicators to evaluate transition to adult care are needed to benchmark and compare performance across conditions and health systems. This systematic review aims to identify quality indicators for successful transition to adult care which can be applied across chronic physical and/or mental illnesses., Methods: Published literature will be searched using MEDLINE, Embase and CINHAL from earliest available date to July 2021. Grey literature will be searched using the Grey Matters tool. Using a set of inclusion/exclusion criteria, two independent reviewers will screen titles and abstracts, followed by full-text review. Disagreements will be resolved by a third reviewer. Study selection and data extraction will follow the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses Protocols. Study appraisal will be completed using the Appraisal of Guidelines for Research and Evaluation for Quality Indicators instrument. Extracted quality indicators will be categorised into a conceptual framework., Ethics and Dissemination: Results from this review will offer novel insights into quality indicators that may be used to measure and evaluate transition success across conditions, which will be disseminated via a Canadian transition collaborative, workshops and peer-reviewed publication. Extracted quality indicators will be further prioritised in a Delphi study with patients, caregivers and providers. This is a critical step in developing a core set of metrics to evaluate transitions to adult care. Ethics approval is not required as this review will identify and synthesise findings from published literature., Prospero Registration Number: CRD42020198030., Competing Interests: Competing interests: None declared., (© Author(s) (or their employer(s)) 2021. Re-use permitted under CC BY-NC. No commercial re-use. See rights and permissions. Published by BMJ.)

Transitional care interventions have the potential to optimize continuity of care, improve health outcomes and enhance quality of life for adolescents and young adults living with chronic childhood-onset disabilities, including neurodevelopmental disorders, as they transition to adult health and social care services. The paucity of research in this area poses challenges in identifying and implementing interventions for research, evaluation and implementation. The purpose of this project was to advance this research agenda by identifying the transitional care interventions from the scientific literature and prioritize interventions for study. A modified-Delphi approach involving two rounds of online surveys followed by a face-to-face consensus meeting with knowledge users, researchers and clinician experts in transitional care (n = 19) was used. A subsequent virtual meeting concluded the formulation of next steps. Experts rated 16 categories of interventions, derived from a systematic review, on importance, impact, and feasibility. Seven of the 16 interventions categories received a mean score rating of ≥7 (out of 10) on all three rating categories. Participants then rank ordered the reduced list of seven interventions in order of priority and the top four ranked interventions advanced for further discussion at a consensus meeting. Using the Template for Intervention Description and Replication (TIDieR) checklist as a guide, the participants identified that a study of a peer system navigator was worthy of future evaluation. This study highlighted that transitional care interventions are complex and multifaceted. However, the presence of a peer to support system navigation, advocacy and individual and family education was considered the most ideal intervention addressing the current gap in care. Future research, which aims to engage patients and families in a co-design approach, is recommended to further develop this intervention., Competing Interests: The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest., (Copyright © 2021 Duncan, Luong, Perrier, Bayley, Andrew, Arbour-Nicitopoulos, Chan, Curran, Dimitropoulos, Hartman, Huang, Kastner, Kingsnorth, McCormick, Nelson, Nicholas, Penner, Thompson, Toulany, Woo, Zee and Munce.)

Adolescents with severe obesity are subject to a high prevalence of weight-based victimization that may lead to pervasive mental health symptoms. However, different coping strategies could potentially modulate these psychological consequences. This study aims to explore how treatment-seeking adolescents with severe obesity cope with weight-based victimization. This was a qualitative research study using an interpretive phenomenological analytic approach. One-on-one semi structured interviews were completed with 19 adolescents (63% female) enrolled in a weight management program. The interviews were transcribed and sequentially analysed until data saturation was attained. The majority of participants (89.5%) described being a victim of weight-based victimization and highlighted a significant emotional toll. Two key themes were identified that captured the various coping strategies used by participants. Over half (52.9%) described approach coping strategies where they acted on the source to invoke change by standing up for themselves, helping others in similar situations or becoming a bully themselves. Whilst the majority (94.1%) used avoidant coping strategies such as feigning a strong exterior façade, denial, isolation and self-harm. Nearly half (47.1%) used both strategies. Treatment-seeking adolescents with severe obesity commonly use avoidant coping strategies to deal with weight-based victimization. These strategies are associated with negative mental health outcomes and should be evaluated when counselling adolescents with obesity who have experienced weight-based victimization., (© 2021 The Authors. Clinical Obesity published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd on behalf of World Obesity Federation.)

Context: Transition from the pediatric to the adult health care system is a complex process that should include medical, psychosocial, educational, recreational, and vocational considerations., Objective: In this systematic review, we aim to synthesize the evidence on transitional care interventions (TCIs) to improve the quality of life (QoL) for adolescents and young adults with childhood-onset disabilities, including neurodevelopmental disorders., Data Sources: Four electronic databases (Medline, Embase, PsycINFO, and Cumulative Index to Nursing and Allied Health Literature) were searched., Study Selection: In the included studies, researchers examined TCIs for adolescents and young adults (12-24 years of age) with childhood-onset disabilities. Studies were experimental, quasi-experimental, and observational studies published in the last 26 years., Data Extraction: Two reviewers independently completed study screening, data extraction, and risk-of-bias assessment., Results: Fifty-two studies were included. Five studies reported on QoL, but statistically significant improvements were noted in only 1 of these studies. Significant improvements were also found in secondary outcomes including disability-related knowledge and transitional readiness. TCIs targeted patients, families and/or caregivers, and health care providers and exhibited great heterogeneity in their characteristics and components., Limitations: Inconsistent reporting on interventions between studies hindered synthesis of the relationships between specific intervention characteristics and outcomes., Conclusions: Although there is limited evidence on the impact of TCIs on the QoL for youth with childhood-onset disabilities, there is indication that they can be effective in improving patient and provider outcomes. The initiation of transition-focused care at an early age may contribute to improved long-term health outcomes in this population., Competing Interests: POTENTIAL CONFLICT OF INTEREST: The authors have indicated they have no potential conflicts of interest to disclose., (Copyright © 2020 by the American Academy of Pediatrics.)

Background: Previous literature reports inconsistent associations between obesity and mental health. The objective of this study was to determine the association between weight status and mental health service utilization in Ontario children and youth., Methods: A cross-sectional study of children 0 to 18 years, identified using primary care electronic medical records from the EMRPC database in Ontario, Canada was conducted. Height and weight data were extracted to calculate BMI and linked to administrative data on mental health related outpatient visits, emergency department visits, and hospitalizations. Multivariable logistic regression models were performed., Results: A total of 50,565 children were included. Overall, 2.2% were underweight, 70.4% had a normal weight, 18.3% were overweight, 6.9% had obesity and 2.2% had severe obesity. 28.2% of all children had at least one mental health visit. Multivariable analyses showed children with overweight, obesity, and severe obesity were 1.11 (95% CI 1.05-1.17), 1.18 (95% CI 1.08-1.27) and 1.39 (95% CI 1.22-1.59) times more likely to have an outpatient mental health visit compared to children with normal weight., Conclusion: Increased weight status was associated with mental health related outpatient visits and emergency department visits. This study may inform policy makers' planning of mental health resources for children with obesity and severe obesity., (Copyright © 2020 Canadian Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry.)

Length of stay (LOS) is an important issue for many healthcare organizations. In-patients with extreme LOS account for a disproportionately large percentage of hospital costs. Our analysis of over 15,000 pediatric hospital discharges at The Hospital for Sick Children (Toronto, Canada) between 2015 and 2016 revealed that the vast majority of patients with extreme LOS were discharged directly home, with only a minority receiving home-based services. Patients with the greatest LOS were accounted for by primarily four subspecialty services. Although this report outlines an analysis of pediatric in-patients, our findings and implications are relevant for all jurisdictions and populations as many acute care hospitals often "hold" patients with complex, chronic illness as in-patients for extended periods because alternate appropriate services may not exist or be available. Our case study highlights three key areas to improve quality of care for patients with extreme LOS: alternate levels of care, system resources and transitions to home., (Copyright © 2020 Longwoods Publishing.)

Youth with eating disorders are often cared for by specialized interdisciplinary teams in pediatric tertiary care centers. Enhanced involvement of primary care providers may provide added benefits to patients because it offers improved access, better continuity of care, and possibly less financial burden. This paper aims to synthesize and assess the literature on the role of the primary care provider in treating pediatric eating disorders in order to identify an optimal model of shared care. Sources were identified by entering search terms in 10 databases. Eligible sources were English publications focusing on primary care-based interventions for eating disorders in youth (=<24 years). The search yielded 5,516 unique citations. Of these, 61 were ultimately included. Sources fell into two categories: (1) primary research (n = 3) and (2) reviews with recommendations for primary care providers (n = 58). The primary studies considered the primary care provider conducting behavioral therapy and guided self-help. Review articles suggested providing education, assessing for hospitalization, aiding in weight restoration, managing complications, referring, and coordinating care. Limited evidence exists that can guide effective primary care-based interventions for the treatment of pediatric eating disorders. Further research is needed to develop and evaluate interventions for the treatment of pediatric eating disorders in primary care settings so that best practices can be identified.

Background: Narcolepsy is a sleep disorder with no cure with onset typically during adolescence. Caring for an adolescent with a lifelong medical condition can negatively impact family structure, cohesion, relationships, and overall functioning. The primary objective of this study was to evaluate family functioning in a cohort of adolescents with narcolepsy using the PedsQL Family Impact Module. The secondary objective was to compare family functioning in adolescents with narcolepsy to adolescents with chronic pain based on published data., Methods: This was a cross-sectional study of adolescents (aged 10 to 18 years) with narcolepsy. The narcolepsy group was recruited from The Hospital for Sick Children in Toronto, Canada. Family functioning was assessed by the PedsQL family impact module total scores, which was completed by the patient's caregiver. The PedsQL family impact module yields a total scale which encompasses parent health-related quality of life, daily activities, family relationships, communication, and worry subscales. Lower scores suggest poorer family functioning. Secondary data analyses were used to compare participants' family functioning to a cohort of adolescents with chronic pain., Results: Thirty adolescents with narcolepsy participated (mean age=13.8 ± 2.2 years, 76.7% male). Family functioning was impaired in this cohort of adolescents with narcolepsy and similar to adolescents with chronic pain (64.0 ± 19.8 versus 64.7 ± 19.5; P=0.849)., Conclusion: Family functioning is impaired in adolescents with narcolepsy. Clinical teams should assess family functioning at routine clinic visits by asking about concerns and challenges related to caring for an adolescent with narcolepsy and providing resources and support as needed., (© The Author(s) 2019. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the Canadian Paediatric Society. All rights reserved. For permissions, please e-mail: journals.permissions@oup.com.)

Introduction: Positive airway therapy (PAP) adherence rates are suboptimal among adolescents with obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) and strategies to increase PAP adherence is a clinical priority. This study evaluates if caregiver support is associated with PAP adherence rates among adolescents with OSA., Methods: We conducted a retrospective study and evaluated PAP adherence rates among adolescents with OSA from 2012 to 2017. Adherence was measured as continuous variables: average PAP usage (minutes per night) and average PAP usage >4 hours/night (% of all nights). We evaluated if adolescents with OSA who were receiving practical caregiver support with PAP had higher adherence than adolescents with OSA without caregiver support., Results: One hundred and seven adolescents with OSA (mean age=14.1±2.5 years, 64.5% male, mean BMI percentile=89.0±21.8) seen between January 2012 and August 2017 at our institution were included. In this study, 60.7% (n=65) of adolescents with OSA were receiving practical caregiver support with PAP therapy. Adolescents with OSA receiving practical caregiver support with PAP used therapy for a significantly greater duration each night compared to adolescents who were not receiving practical caregiver support (298.5±206.7 versus 211.9±187.2 minutes; P=0.02). Greater time since the initial PAP prescription was independently associated with PAP adherence., Conclusion: Focusing on PAP adherence early may help adolescents with OSA incorporate therapy into their nightly routine, which may improve adherence and lead to improved health outcomes in adolescents with OSA. Practical caregiver support may be an essential component of ensuring optimal PAP adherence among adolescents with OSA., (© The Author(s) 2019. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the Canadian Paediatric Society. All rights reserved. For permissions, please e-mail: journals.permissions@oup.com.)

Importance: Adolescents with severe mental illness often age out of pediatric care without a clear transfer of care to adult services. The extent to which primary care provides stability during this vulnerable transition period is not known., Objective: To analyze the association between primary care continuity during the transition from pediatric to adult care and need for acute mental health services in young adulthood., Design, Setting, and Participants: This population-based cohort study used linked health and demographic administrative data for all adolescents aged 12 to 16 years with severe mental illness ascertained by hospitalization for schizophrenia, eating disorder, or mood disorder between April 1, 2002, and April 1, 2014, in Ontario, Canada. Participants were followed up through March 31, 2017. Data were analyzed from July 2018 to January 2019., Exposures: Continuous primary care (same physician as baseline [age 12-16 years] always or sometimes), discontinuous primary care (visits to a primary care physician during the transition period who was not the patient's usual physician), and no primary care during the transition period (age 17-18 years)., Main Outcomes and Measures: Mental health-related hospitalizations and emergency department visits in young adulthood (age 19-26 years) adjusted for sex, rurality, neighborhood income, mental illness type, and health service use before transition., Results: Among 8409 adolescents with severe mental illness (5720 [68.0%] female; mean [SD] age, 14.8 [1.2] years), 5478 (65.1%) had continuous primary care, 2391 (28.4%) had discontinuous primary care, and 540 (6.4%) had no primary care during the transition period. Youths with no primary care during transition were more likely to be male (57.2%), have lower socioeconomic status (31.5%), and have no usual primary care practitioner at baseline (25.6%). Compared with continuous care, patients with discontinuous and no primary care had an increased rate of mental health-related hospitalization in young adulthood (adjusted relative rate, 1.20; 95% CI, 1.10-1.30; and adjusted relative rate, 1.30; 95% CI, 1.08-1.56, respectively)., Conclusions and Relevance: In the context of decreasing outpatient specialist mental health visit rates following transition to adult care, ensuring adequate access to primary care during this vulnerable period may improve mental health outcomes in young adulthood.

Background: Growing evidence supports the efficacy of paediatric bariatric surgery. However, there is a paucity of data examining adolescent outcomes post surgery. Among adults, studies have shown that early weight loss is associated with long-term weight loss. Therefore, the aim of our study was to investigate the association between early weight loss at 3 months with longer-term weight loss at 12 and 24 months in adolescents post surgery. We hypothesized that patients who have greater weight loss within the first 3 months will have greater weight loss at 12 and 24 months post surgery., Methods: A retrospective chart review of bariatric surgery patients (n = 28) was conducted. Anthropometric measurements at baseline and 3, 12, and 24 months were analysed., Results: Percent of excess weight loss (%EWL) at 3, 12, and 24 months were 33.6 ± 11.3%, 55.0 ± 20.5%, and 55.1 ± 27.1%, respectively. %EWL at 3 months was positively associated with %EWL at 12 and 24 months (P < 0.05). Receiver operating characteristic curve results identified a cut-off of greater than or equal to 30%EWL at 3 months predicted successful weight loss, defined as greater than or equal to 50%EWL at 12 and 24 months., Conclusion: These findings demonstrate that majority of weight loss among adolescents occurs within the first postoperative year. Greater %EWL by 3 months post surgery predicts successful and sustained weight loss over time., (© 2019 World Obesity Federation.)