Researchers at Johns Hopkins Children’s Center express that the study results offer a sense of reassurance, instilling “guarded optimism” regarding the developmental outcomes of young children who have been exposed to restrictions stemming from the pandemic.
A study conducted by the Johns Hopkins Children’s Center has found that infants and children up to the age of 5 experienced only “modest” delays in reaching developmental milestones due to disruptions and restrictions from the COVID-19 pandemic.
In a report on the study that was recently published in JAMA Pediatrics, investigators evaluated possible links between pandemic-related disruptions to everyday life and changes in developmental milestone screening scores. The data were from the Comprehensive Health and Decision Information System (CHADIS), a web-based screening platform caregivers use to complete surveys about their children’s development. It is used by more than 5,000 pediatric practices in 48 U.S. states.
Using the Ages and Stages Questionnaire-3 (ASQ-3), a caregiver-completed measure of child development routinely collected as part of pediatric care, researchers say they found only small decreases in communication, problem-solving, and personal-social skills, and no changes in fine or gross motor skills among children in the study.
“We found, overall, that while there are some changes, the sky is not falling, and that is a really important and reassuring finding,” says Sara Johnson, Ph.D., M.P.H., corresponding author of the study, director of the Rales Center for the Integration of Health and Education at Johns Hopkins Children’s Center, and Blanket Fort Foundation professor of pediatrics at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine.
Impact of the Pandemic on Families
Numerous studies, the researchers say, found the COVID-19 pandemic and related lockdown restrictions disrupted the lives of many people, including families with young children. Everyday life and daily routines were upended, as schools and child care centers closed, many people began working from home and social contacts diminished. Many experienced increased stress, anxiety, and social isolation due to these changes and activity cancellations.
Research has also shown the pandemic is linked to lower child health-related quality of life, increased mental health concerns, decreased sleep, and increased risk of obesity. However, the impact of the pandemic on developmental milestones among young children in the U.S. remained unclear, in part because studies designed to address them were done outside the United States, or in small samples. In the new study, Children’s Center researchers looked at the developmental milestone status of 50,205 children, ages 0 to 5 years, drawn from a sample of more than half a million children whose parents or caregivers completed the ASQ-3. The ASQ-3 assesses children’s developmental milestones in five skill domains: communication, gross motor, fine motor, problem-solving, and personal-social.
Researchers compared the children before and during the pandemic from 2018 to 2022 and found ASQ-3 score decreases in the communication (about 3%), problem-solving (about 2%) and personal-social (about 2%) skill domains. They found no changes in fine or gross motor skill domains. When looking specifically at infants 0–12 months old, similarly modest effects were observed, and there were only decreases in the communication domain (about 3%) and problem-solving domain (about 2%).
“We thought it was possible infants might experience less impact than the older kids, given that many caregivers may have spent more time at home with their very young children,” says Johnson. “But we saw generally the same things in infants as we did for older kids.”
Also, given an increase in parent and caregiver worry and stress, researchers investigated whether parents and caregivers reported more worries about their child during the pandemic, regardless of milestone achievement, and found worries about their child only increased slightly during the pandemic, compared to before the pandemic.
Study Limitations and Long-Term Considerations
While the researchers say the findings are reassuring, they add that the implications for children’s long-term development remain unclear.
“It is important for us to continue to keep an eye on kids of all ages in terms of development, so we can understand whether these changes have longer-term implications for children or if new challenges emerge as children age,” says Johnson.
Johnson and her team of investigators believe their study findings will aid in planning for future public health crises, and also demonstrate the importance of shoring up the clinical infrastructure of overburdened health systems in the U.S., particularly developmental-behavioral pediatricians, who are specially trained to evaluate and treat developmental concerns. These resources will be essential to respond to the developmental needs of children now and in the future.
The investigators cautioned that the study did not factor in some variables that might have changed the findings, such as prenatal substance abuse and other health conditions. In addition, infants born preterm were excluded from the study, which may underestimate developmental impacts for this subgroup. Researchers also cannot rule out “selection bias” among healthcare providers participating in CHADIS, and there was no comparison group of children who weren’t exposed to COVID-19 pandemic restrictions.
Reference: “Developmental Milestone Attainment in US Children Before and During the COVID-19 Pandemic” by Sara B. Johnson, Molly Kuehn, Jennifer O. Lambert, J. Paul Spin, Lauren M. Klein, Barbara Howard, Raymond Sturner and Eliana M. Perrin, 22 April 2024, JAMA Pediatrics.
DOI: 10.1001/jamapediatrics.2024.0683
Along with Johnson, the study authors from Johns Hopkins include Molly Kuehn, Jennifer Lambert, Lauren Klein, Barbara Howard (also with CHADIS Inc.), Raymond Sturner (also with the Center for Promotion of Child Development through Primary Care), and Eliana Perrin. J. Paul Spin from EVERSANA was also an author.
The study was funded by the Johns Hopkins Population Center and its infrastructure grant (P2CHD042854) from the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD).
![](https://www.nanoappsmedical.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/05/spacer.jpg)
News
The Silent Battle Within: How Your Organs Choose Between Mom and Dad’s Genes
Research reveals that selective expression of maternal or paternal X chromosomes varies by organ, driven by cellular competition. A new study published today (July 26) in Nature Genetics by the Lymphoid Development Group at the MRC [...]
Study identifies genes increasing risk of severe COVID-19
Whether or not a person becomes seriously ill with COVID-19 depends, among other things, on genetic factors. With this in mind, researchers from the University Hospital Bonn (UKB) and the University of Bonn, in [...]
Small regions of the brain can take micro-naps while the rest of the brain is awake and vice versa
Sleep and wake: They're totally distinct states of being that define the boundaries of our daily lives. For years, scientists have measured the difference between these instinctual brain processes by observing brain waves, with [...]
Redefining Consciousness: Small Regions of the Brain Can Take Micro-Naps While the Rest of the Brain Is Awake
The study broadly reveals how fast brain waves, previously overlooked, establish fundamental patterns of sleep and wakefulness. Scientists have developed a new method to analyze sleep and wake states by detecting ultra-fast neuronal activity [...]
AI Reveals Health Secrets Through Facial Temperature Mapping
Researchers have found that different facial temperatures correlate with chronic illnesses like diabetes and high blood pressure, and these can be detected using AI with thermal cameras. They highlight the potential of this technology [...]
Breakthrough in aging research: Blocking IL-11 extends lifespan and improves health in mice
In a recent study published in the journal Nature, a team of researchers used murine models and various pharmacological and genetic approaches to examine whether pro-inflammatory signaling involving interleukin (IL)-11, which activates signaling molecules such [...]
Promise for a universal influenza vaccine: Scientists validate theory using 1918 flu virus
New research led by Oregon Health & Science University reveals a promising approach to developing a universal influenza vaccine—a so-called "one and done" vaccine that confers lifetime immunity against an evolving virus. The study, [...]
New Projects Aim To Pioneer the Future of Neuroscience
One study will investigate the alterations in brain activity at the cellular level caused by psilocybin, the psychoactive substance found in “magic mushrooms.” How do neurons respond to the effects of magic mushrooms? What [...]
Decoding the Decline: Scientific Insights Into Long COVID’s Retreat
Research indicates a significant reduction in long COVID risk, largely due to vaccination and the virus’s evolution. The study analyzes data from over 441,000 veterans, showing lower rates of long COVID among vaccinated individuals compared [...]
Silicon Transformed: A Breakthrough in Laser Nanofabrication
A new method enables precise nanofabrication inside silicon using spatial light modulation and laser pulses, creating advanced nanostructures for potential use in electronics and photonics. Silicon, the cornerstone of modern electronics, photovoltaics, and photonics, [...]
Caught in the actinium: New research could help design better cancer treatments
The element actinium was first discovered at the turn of the 20th century, but even now, nearly 125 years later, researchers still don't have a good grasp on the metal's chemistry. That's because actinium [...]
Innovative Light-Controlled Drugs Could Revolutionize Neuropathic Pain Treatment
A team of researchers from the Institute for Bioengineering of Catalonia (IBEC) has developed light-activated derivatives of the anti-epileptic drug carbamazepine to treat neuropathic pain. Light can be harnessed to target drugs to specific [...]
Green Gold: Turning E-Waste Into a Treasure Trove of Rare Earth Metals
Scientists are developing a process inspired by nature that efficiently recovers europium from old fluorescent lamps. The approach could lead to the long-awaited recycling of rare earth metals. A small molecule that naturally serves [...]
Cambridge Study: AI Chatbots Have an “Empathy Gap,” and It Could Be Dangerous
A new study suggests a framework for “Child Safe AI” in response to recent incidents showing that many children perceive chatbots as quasi-human and reliable. A study has indicated that AI chatbots often exhibit [...]
Nanoparticle-based delivery system could offer treatment for diabetics with rare insulin allergy
Up to 3% of people with diabetes have an allergic reaction to insulin. A team at Forschungszentrum Jülich has now studied a method that could be used to deliver the active substance into the [...]
Nanorobot kills cancer cells in mice with hidden weapon
Researchers at Karolinska Institutet in Sweden have developed nanorobots that kill cancer cells in mice. The robot's weapon is hidden in a nanostructure and is exposed only in the tumor microenvironment, sparing healthy cells. [...]