Table 3.
Study characteristics and pooled prevalence for anxiety
| Study | Diagnostic/Screening instrument used | Pooled effect estimates (95% CI) |
Heterogeneity (I2) | Total # of people | Total # of studies | AMSTAR 2 rating | Impact on MH |
| Racine et al19 | GAD-7; SCARED; CBCL; DASS-21; CAQ; HADS; Well-Being Index; SCAS-P-8; SAS and MHBQ | Pooled prevalence=20.5% (17 to 24) |
99.27% | 70 707 | 25 | Low | Negative |
| Sajid et al20 | SASC in Zheng et al; STAI in Senkalfa et al | SMD=1.1 (−1.43 to 3.63) | 98% | 1653 | 2 | Critically low | Negative |
| Ma et al21 | SCARED (n=5); GAD-7 (n=5); SAS; PQSPHE; MMHI-60 | Pooled prevalence=25.5% (16.0 to 35.1) |
99.9% | 42 435 | 13 | Low | Unclear |
| Panda et al28 | Specific study questionnaire (n=7); PHQ-9; GAD-7; IES-R; DSM-5; SCAS, CDI; STAI; CBCL; SCARED; Short Version of SAS; Coping Style Scale and Internet Addiction Scale | Pooled prevalence=34.5% (33.8 to 35.1) |
45% | 21 330 | 11 | Critically low | Negative |
| Chai et al34 | DASS-21; SCL-90; SCARED; DSRS; MMHI-60; GAD-7; PSS-10; SCSQ; PHQ-9; CDI-SFF | Pooled prevalence=25% (20 to 32) |
99% | 22 809 | 9 | Low | Negative |
CAQ, Child Anxiety Questionnaire; CBCL, Child Behaviour Checklist; CDI, Children’s Depression Inventory; CDI-SF, Short Form of CDI; DASS-21, Depression, Anxiety and Stress Scale; DSM-5, The Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders-5; DSRS, Depression Self-Rating Scale; GAD-7, General Anxiety Disorder-7; HADS, Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale; IES-R, Impact of Event Scale-Revised; MHBQ, MacArthur Health and Behaviour Questionnaire; MMHI-60, Mental Health Inventory of Middle-school Students-60; PHQ-9, Patient Health Questionnaire-9; PQSPHE, Psychological Questionnaire for Sudden Public Health Events; PSS-10, Perceived Stress Scale-10; SAS, Self-rating Anxiety Scale; SASC, Social Anxiety Scale for Children; SCARED, Screen for Child Anxiety-Related Disorders; SCAS, Spence Children’s Anxiety Scale; SCAS-P-8, SCAS-Parent Version; SCL-90, Symptom Checklist-90; SCSQ, Simplified Coping Style Questionnaire; STAI, State-Trait-Anxiety Inventory.