Introduction:

COVID-19 pandemic represents a momentous impact for mental health which is poorly addressed due to its relative invisibility; but it can affect especially most vulnerable people, among them the children-adolescents´ population.

Objective:

Examine the factors impacting in children-adolescents population’s mental health during COVID-19 pandemic.

Methods:

It was carried out a bibliographic review from May to August 2020 using literature published in PubMed/Medline, Science Direct, SciELO, Cumed, and Lilacs databases as information sources. Some keywords were used as: COVID-19, quarantine, confinement, social distancing, mental health, mental disorders, psychiatric disorders, childhood, and adolescence.

Results:

Themes as stress, physical impairment, social distancing and isolation, adverse experiences, resilience, mental health, psychological impact, child abuse, and family were reviewed. Adverse experiences lived during the development stages have a critical place in the composition of mental health.

Final considerations:

Mental health in the children-adolescents´ population can be affected by the adverse consequences of COVID-19 pandemic when the person is in the middle of the psychological development. Not all the psychological responses can be qualified as diseases because most of them are normal reactions to an abnormal situation.

The ultimate protection’s factor for children and adolescents is the family with presence of stable and responsible adults who can offer them the necessary support, establish routines and healthy habits, and promote resilience.

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