SYSTEMATIC REVIEW article
Front. Psychiatry
Sec. Public Mental Health
Volume 16 - 2025 | doi: 10.3389/fpsyt.2025.1643145
This article is part of the Research TopicCombating Social Isolation Among Youth: Strategies for Enhancing Mental and Physical HealthView all 3 articles
Suicidality and self-harm in adolescents before and after the COVID-19 pandemic: a systematic review
Provisionally accepted
Danilo Bastos Bispo Ferreira*
Renata Maria Silva Santos
Maria Carolina Lobato Machado
Victhor Hugo Martins RezendePatricia Gazire de Marco
Marco Aurelio Romano-Silva
Debora Marques de Miranda- Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, Belo Horizonte, Brazil
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Introduction: Adolescent mental health, self-harm, and suicidality are critical concerns during this developmental stage, marked by intense physical, emotional, and social changes. The COVID-19 pandemic has further intensified these vulnerabilities by disrupting daily routines, increasing social isolation, limiting access to mental health services, and exacerbating academic and emotional stressors. Methods: This systematic review followed the PRISMA 2020 guidelines and employed the PECO strategy to identify relevant studies. A total of 55 quantitative studies published between 2010 and 2024 were included. These studies examined the prevalence and risk factors of self-harm and suicidal behaviors among adolescents aged 10 to 19 years, comparing findings from the pre-pandemic and pandemic periods. Psychosocial, economic, and cultural determinants were also evaluated. Results: The analysis revealed a consistent increase in self-harm and suicidality during the pandemic, with adolescent girls being disproportionately affected. Gender disparities were observed across diverse cultural contexts. Contributing factors included social isolation, excessive screen time, reduced access to education and healthcare, and increased family or financial stress. Cultural variability shaped both prevalence and clinical expression. Discussion: These findings underscore the amplifying effect of the COVID-19 pandemic on adolescent mental health vulnerabilities and highlight the need for culturally sensitive, gender-informed preventive strategies. Public policies should prioritize mental health support for youth and address systemic inequities to mitigate the psychological consequences of global crises. This review offers important insights into adolescent mental health in times of collective adversity.
Keywords: adolescents, Suicidal Behavior, Suicidality, suicide attempt, self-harm, COVID-19 pandemic, Mental Health, Risk factors
Received: 08 Jun 2025; Accepted: 21 Aug 2025.
Copyright: © 2025 Bastos Bispo Ferreira, Silva Santos, Lobato Machado, Martins Rezende, Gazire de Marco, Romano-Silva and Marques de Miranda. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.
* Correspondence: Danilo Bastos Bispo Ferreira, Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, Belo Horizonte, Brazil
Disclaimer: All claims expressed in this article are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of their affiliated organizations, or those of the publisher, the editors and the reviewers. Any product that may be evaluated in this article or claim that may be made by its manufacturer is not guaranteed or endorsed by the publisher.