Long-term effects of the coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic on the health and safety of children and mothers around the world

BACKGROUND: Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) epidemic is a global health disaster with significant effects on the health of children and mothers on a scale not seen in 100 years. METHODS: We searched in Google Scholar, PubMed, and Scopus databases with keywords of “COVID-19”, “children”, “mothers”, “health”, “impact”, “effect”, and “pandemic”. We found 33 related new studies and wrote a narrative review article. Some of them were full-text articles and others were organizational statistics or expert comments. RESULTS: Analyses showed that the COVID-19 epidemic led to widespread disruption of health systems and reduced access to food, and low- and middle-income countries should expect large increases in maternal and child mortality. The long-term effects of COVID-19 on the physical and mental health of children and mothers are very different and challenging compared to other people. During the pandemic, many mothers denied access to prenatal care. In addition to the many indirect effects, although most children have mild symptoms, they should be treated in the intensive care unit (ICU) if children are hospitalized with the same percentage of adults. CONCLUSION: It is very necessary for politicians and organizations in charge of children's health to have comprehensive and long-term plans to limit the destructive and unintended effects of the pandemic on children and mothers around the world, with a greater focus on underdeveloped and less developed countries