Adolescents in racial and ethnic minority groups are more likely to have a major depressive disorder (MDD) yet less likely to receive treatment.
There are significant differences in the prevalence of MDD among adolescents, and race plays a key role, according to a recent study published by JAMA Pediatrics.
In an analysis of MDD prevalence and treatment among adolescents, researchers examined the data of 10,743 adolescents ages 12 to 17 collected in the 2021 National Survey on Drug Use and Health from January 14 to December 20, 2021, a key time in which mental health took a serious hit amid the COVID-19 pandemic.
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The findings underscore the impact of the pandemic on the youth mental health crisis. Researchers found that during the first full calendar of the pandemic, one in five adolescents had MDD, and less than half of those who needed mental health treatment received it.
Additional findings include:
- Adolescents of more than one race or ethnicity had the highest rate of MDD (26.5 percent).
- Overall, the lowest rates of any MDD treatment, compared to white adolescents, were among Latinx youth (29.2 percent) and those of more than one race or ethnicity (21.1 percent).
- Latinx teens and teens of more than one race or ethnicity also received less treatment by any clinician, treatment by a mental health specialist, treatment by a non-specialist clinician, and use of any psychotropic medication prescription.
- Black adolescents had lower rates of MDD treatment by any clinician compared to white adolescents, as well as lower prescription rates for any psychotropic medication.
- Asian and Latinx youth had lower rates of virtual mental health treatment compared to white youth.
- Black and Latinx adolescents had lower rates of appointments transition to telehealth, and Black adolescents also experienced delays in getting their prescriptions.
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“These findings suggest that U.S. federal policy should target adolescents as a whole, and racial and ethnic minority populations in particular, to ensure timely and equitable access to high-quality mental health treatment,” wrote researchers, urging for efforts which address social, racial, ethnic, and cultural determinants of health.