Disrupted profiles of interoception and mental health in youths: a systematic review

Although sensory integration impairment and atypical bodily perception were long-lasting described in youths with psychopathology, the contribution of interoceptive deficits in pediatric mental health problems remains poorly understood. A systematic search of PubMed, Medline, Cochrane, Psycinfo, and reference lists of the included studies was conducted for articles up to November 2024. Attention was paid to distinguishing objective performance on behavioral tests (i.e., interoceptive accuracy, IAc), subjective self-assessment of competence (i.e., interoceptive sensibility, ISe), the congruence level between objective performance and subjective self-assessment (i.e., interoceptive awareness, IAw) and beliefs on interoception (interoceptive metacognition, IMe). The quality of studies was assessed using a modified version of the Risk Of Bias In Non-randomized Studies of Interventions (ROBINS-I) tool. Of the 761 citations initially identified, 24 studies were finally included. IAc appeared reduced in youths with neurodevelopmental disorders, with mitigated findings regarding anxiety symptoms. ISe were positively correlated with the severity of anxiety and depressive symptoms in pediatric samples. The domain of IMe was particularly impaired among youths with eating disorder symptoms. The review identified few and highly heterogeneous studies. Such preliminary findings support the importance of accounting for different constructs related to interoception and including a trans-nosographical framework of psychopathology to explore these relations.