The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on children's occupations.
Maria Blanta, Anetta Karathanasi, Ioanna Tzonichaki
PMID 38027048WHAT IT FOUND
Pandemic restrictions disrupted children's occupations: outdoor and structured play fell, screen time rose, sleep became irregular, and remote schooling reduced learning and peer contact.
These are patterns, not tested interventions.
Key findings
01Pandemic restrictions reduced outdoor play and physical activity, especially structured activities, while screen time increased for education and recreation.
02In Canada, less than 5% of children met movement behaviour guidelines, and in Spain 65% of children younger than 48 months were exposed to smartphones or tablets daily.
03Sleep routines became inconsistent, with later bedtime and wake-up; in a 14-country longitudinal study, bedtime and wake-up time were delayed by 34 and 60 minutes.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for PTsWhat it means for OTs
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What it does not show
This is a narrative review, not a systematic review or trial, so it summarizes and organizes evidence non-systematically and does not prove that any intervention worked. The included studies varied in quality, design, population and context, which limits how far the findings can be combined or generalized. Only English articles were included, which may miss relevant work. The search and extraction required subjective decisions, and time constraints may have missed studies. The review documented pandemic impacts rather than analyzing included studies in depth. It covers pandemic-era patterns and may not apply to current post-pandemic routines.
Declared interests
The authors declared no potential conflicts of interest and received no financial support.
The easy way to misread this
Do not read the reported increases in screen time and decreases in physical activity as proof that a therapy can reverse them. This narrative review describes pandemic patterns, not tested interventions.