Changes in child and adolescent mental health across the COVID-19 pandemic (2018-2023): Insights from general population and clinical samples in the Netherlands.

Background: The COVID-19 pandemic negatively affected child and adolescent mental health and at the end of the pandemic (April 2022) child mental health had not returned to pre-pandemic levels. We investigated whether this observed increase in mental health problems has continued, halted, or reversed after the end of the pandemic in children from the general population and in children in psychiatric care.

Methods: We collected parent-reported and child-reported data at two additional post-pandemic time points (November/December 2022 and March/April 2023) in children (8-18 years) from two general population samples ( = 818-1056 per measurement) and one clinical sample receiving psychiatric care ( = 320-370) and compared these with data from before the pandemic.

Polydrug Use Typologies of Regular Ecstasy Users Visiting Electronic Dance Music Events: A Latent Class Analysis.

Introduction: Polydrug use patterns among young adults using ecstasy vary, as well as their willingness to change them. Polydrug use patterns are likely associated with different adverse health outcomes. It is unknown whether polydrug use patterns of young adults who use ecstasy are similar in different countries.

The effects of COVID-19 on child mental health: Biannual assessments up to April 2022 in a clinical and two general population samples.

Background: The COVID-19 pandemic has had an acute impact on child mental and social health, but long-term effects are still unclear. We examined how child mental health has developed since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic up to 2 years into the pandemic (April 2022).

Methods: We included children (age 8-18) from two general population samples ( = 222-1333 per measurement and  = 2401-13,362 for pre-covid data) and one clinical sample receiving psychiatric care ( = 334-748).

CLIC4 Regulates Endothelial Barrier Control by Mediating PAR1 Signaling via RhoA.

Background: Endothelial CLICs (chloride intracellular channel proteins) CLIC1 and CLIC4 are required for the GPCRs (G-protein-coupled receptors) S1PR1 (sphingosine-1-phosphate receptor 1) and S1PR3 to activate the small GTPases Rac1 (Ras-related C3 botulinum toxin substrate 1) and RhoA (Ras homolog family member A). To determine whether CLIC1 and CLIC4 function in additional endothelial GPCR pathways, we evaluated CLIC function in thrombin signaling via the thrombin-regulated PAR1 (protease-activated receptor 1) and downstream effector RhoA.

Methods: We assessed the ability of CLIC1 and CLIC4 to relocalize to cell membranes in response to thrombin in human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVEC).

What Do Young Adults Expect from the Recreational Use of Ecstasy (3,4-Methylenedioxymethamphetamine/Molly)? A Latent Class Analysis of a Convenience Sample of Dutch Young Adults.

Introduction: This study offers insights into Dutch young people's expected social and personal consequences of ecstasy use. Substance use expectancies are assumed to be an essential component in explaining substance use behaviour and, therefore, the development of effective substance use prevention and treatment strategies.

Method: Dutch young adults with an online interest in drug-related social media posts were targeted with an online survey about their use of alcohol and drugs.

Surface protein profiling of milk and serum extracellular vesicles unveils body fluid-specific signatures.

Cell-derived extracellular vesicles (EVs) are currently in the limelight as potential disease biomarkers. The promise of EV-based liquid biopsy resides in the identification of specific disease-associated EV signatures. Knowing the reference EV profile of a body fluid can facilitate the identification of such disease-associated EV-biomarkers.

Dually innervated dendritic spines develop in the absence of excitatory activity and resist plasticity through tonic inhibitory crosstalk.

Dendritic spines can be directly connected to both inhibitory and excitatory presynaptic terminals, resulting in nanometer-scale proximity of opposing synaptic functions. While dually innervated spines (DiSs) are observed throughout the central nervous system, their developmental timeline and functional properties remain uncharacterized. Here we used a combination of serial section electron microscopy, live imaging, and local synapse activity manipulations to investigate DiS development and function in rodent hippocampus.

Augmented reality as a novel approach for addiction treatment: development of a smoking cessation app.

Objective: Augmented reality (AR) is a rapidly developing technology that has substantial potential as a novel approach for addiction treatment, including tobacco use. AR can facilitate the delivery of cue exposure therapy (CET) such that individuals can experience the treatment in their natural environments as viewed via a smartphone screen, addressing the limited generalizbility of extinction learning. Previously, our team developed a basic AR app for smoking cessation and demonstrated the necessary mechanisms for CET.

The effectiveness of a web-based Dutch parenting program to prevent overweight in children 9-13 years of age: Results of a two-armed cluster randomized controlled trial.

Introduction: Although parental support is an important component in programs designed to prevent overweight in children, current programs pay remarkably little attention to the role of parenting. We therefore developed a web-based parenting program entitled "Making a healthy deal with your child". This e-learning program can be incorporated into existing overweight prevention programs.

The Need for a Data Ecosystem for Youth Mental Health in The Netherlands.

The Netherlands is missing nationally representative data on child and adolescent mental health, e.g., on prevalence, course, and consequences of psychological disorders and mental health care utilization.

A Game-Based School Program for Mental Health Literacy and Stigma on Depression (Moving Stories): Cluster Randomized Controlled Trial.

Background: Depressive symptoms are highly prevalent among adolescents in Western countries. However, although treatment for depressive symptoms is available, many adolescents do not seek help when they need it. Important barriers to help-seeking among adolescents include low mental health literacy and high stigma.

Development of a Dynamically Tailored mHealth Intervention (What Do You Drink) to Reduce Excessive Drinking Among Dutch Lower-Educated Students: User-Centered Design Approach.

Background: The high prevalence and adverse consequences of excessive drinking among lower-educated adolescents and young adults are public concerns in the Netherlands. Evidence-based alcohol prevention programs targeting adolescents and young adults with a low educational background are sparse.

Objective: This study aimed to describe the planned process for the theory- and evidence-based development, implementation, and evaluation of a dynamically tailored mobile alcohol intervention, entitled What Do You Drink (WDYD), aimed at lower-educated students from secondary vocational education and training (Middelbaar Beroepsonderwijs in Dutch).

Augmented reality for extinction of cue-provoked urges to smoke: Proof of concept.

Objective: Cue-exposure therapy (CET) aims to extinguish conditioned cue reactivity (CR) to aid in smoking cessation. A key disadvantage of extant CET is its limited ability to generalize extinction to the real world. Our team developed a set of augmented reality smoking-related and neutral cues that can appear in real-time in smokers' natural environments as viewed through a smartphone screen.

Latent Classes of Substance Use in Young Adults - A Systematic Review.

This systematic review provides an overview of studies on latent classes related to the substance use among young adults (18-25 years). Identifying these classes helps to detect high-risk groups, setting a base for selective prevention. This systematic literature review included peer-reviewed studies (published up to February, 2021) that identified latent classes and investigated predictors of latent classes relating to the use of marijuana, alcohol and/or other substances within samples of young adults.

The degree of consistency of applying parental dietary and sedentary behavior rules as indicators for overweight in children: a cross-sectional study.

Background: Review studies increasingly emphasize the importance of the role of parenting in interventions for preventing overweight in children. The aim of this study was to examine typologies regarding how consistently parents apply energy-balance related behavior rules, and the association between these typologies and socio-demographic characteristics, energy balance-related behaviors among school age children, and the prevalence of being overweight.

Methods: For this cross-sectional study, we had access to a database managed by a Municipal Health Service Department in the Netherlands.

A school-based program to prevent depressive symptoms and strengthen well-being among pre-vocational students (Happy Lessons): protocol for a cluster randomized controlled trial and implementation study.

Background: Depression is one of the leading causes of illness and disability among young people. In the Netherlands, one in twelve Dutch adolescents has experienced depression in the last 12 months. Pre-vocational students are at higher risk for elevated depressive symptoms.

Mindfulness-based stress reduction intervention for elementary school teachers: a mixed method study.

Background: In the Netherlands, more than half of the teachers working in primary education experience high levels of work stress. Compared to other professions, teachers are more likely to drop out from work and develop mental illnesses. Almost one in five even choose a new profession within 5 years after starting as a teacher.

Implementation of a proactive referral tool for child healthcare professionals to encourage and facilitate parental smoking cessation in the Netherlands: a mixed-methods study.

Background: Recently, the parent-tailored telephone based smoking cessation counseling program 'Smoke-free Parents' was shown to be effective in helping parents to quit smoking. To implement this program in child healthcare settings in the Netherlands, the research team developed a proactive referral tool to refer parents to Smoke-free Parents. The aim of the present implementation study was to explore the facilitators, barriers, and suggestions for improvement in the implementation of this referral tool.

[The therapeutic alliance as predictor in the treatment of young people].

Background: The quality of the therapeutic alliance is an important factor in the treatment of both adult and adolescent patients in psychiatry. Little is known about the importance of the therapeutic alliance among youths who seek help for their substance abuse problems in addiction treatment.

Aim: We investigated the importance of first treatment session therapeutic alliance for outcome in youth mental health and addiction treatment, considering both the youths' and therapists' perspective.

Investigating the association between smoking, environmental tobacco smoke exposure and reward-related brain activity in adolescent experimental smokers.

Reduced anticipatory reward-related activity, especially in the ventral striatum (VS), may underly adolescent vulnerability to develop nicotine dependence. It remains unclear whether nicotine uptake caused by environmental tobacco smoke (ETS) exposure, known to be associated with future smoking, might prompt similar changes in the brain's reward system, rendering adolescents vulnerable for development of nicotine dependence. To address this question, we tested whether current ETS exposure and monthly smoking are associated with VS hypoactivity for non-drug rewards in experimental smoking adolescents.

Program uptake of a parent-tailored telephone smoking cessation counselling: An examination of recruitment approaches.

Introduction: Recently, a Dutch proactive parent-tailored telephone smoking cessation counselling program, Smoke-free Parents (SFP), was demonstrated to be effective in helping parents to quit smoking. This study aimed to examine the program's uptake and the costs of two recruitment approaches (i.e.