Clinical and sociodemographic characteristics of patients hospitalized in a child and adolescent psychiatry inpatient unit

Objective: In this study, it was aimed to examine the clinical and sociodemographic characteristics of patients hospitalized in Ankara City Hospital Child and Adolescent Psychiatry Inpatient Unit during the pandemic period. Material and Methods: Medical records of children and adolescents who were hospitalized in Ankara City Hospital Child and Adolescent Psychiatry Inpatient Unit between March 2021 and March 2022 were retrospectively analyzed. Patients were evaluated in terms of sociodemographic characteristics, clinical diagnosis and treatment, duration of hospitalization, and Clinical Global Impression Scale (CGI) scores at admission and discharge. Results: In our study, the mean age of 132 cases (86 girls, 46 boys) was found 15.1±1.8 years. The main diagnoses of the subjects were 30.3% (n=40) major depressive disorder, 25% (n=33) psychotic disorder, 14.4% (n=19) eating disorders, and the remaining 30.3% (n=40) were other disorders. Comorbidity was found in 63.6% (n=84) of the cases. The presence of eating disorders, comorbidity and antidepressant use were found significantly higher in females. There was a significant differences in major depressive disorder (MDD), bipolar disorder (BD), psychotic disorder, eating disorder, conduct disorder, and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) between admission and discharge CGI-Severity (CGI-S) scores. In addition, there was a significant difference between admission and discharge CGI side effects scores only for BD. Conclusion: In our study, major depressive disorder, psychotic disorder, and eating disorder were the most common diagnoses of cases hospitalized in inpatient unit. There was a comorbidity accompanying two out of every three cases. There are few child and adolescent psychiatry services in our country, and studies on this subject are scarce. It is thought that our study will contribute to the literature on child and adolescent psychiatry inpatient units.