COVID-19 Causes Mental Disorders

High prevalence of mental disorders is seen among the populations affected by coronavirus pandemics, as per a meta-analysis in the United States, published in the journal medRxiv*.

The team explored various electronic databases between April 15 until June 1 2020 and identified 60 published articles covering 66,190 participants to analyze the research on Covid-19, severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus (SARS), and Middle East respiratory syndrome (MERS).

‘High prevalence of mental disorders is seen among the populations affected by coronavirus pandemic. This invites the need for research to examine the potentially manifold pathways to individual outcomes among sub-populations most at-risk, for effective interventions’

Mental disorders among the COVID-19 affected group

It was observed that 1 in 5 adults suffered from pandemic-related mental disorders, most notably psychiatric morbidity (32%), depression (17%), anxiety (12%), and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD - 21%).

"Infected/recovered adults (30%) and healthcare providers (20%), in particular, may experience traumatic events (e.g., invasive treatments, witnessing death) that increase the risk of post-traumatic stress disorder," says the research team. Adults in the community, (16%) and quarantined adults (12 %) were also vulnerable to develop the mental disorders.

Common precipitators of the mental health disorders included pandemic-related stressors, threats and traumas, including viral exposure, witnessing illness or death, restricted mobility, unemployment, and economic loss.

A 2019 epidemiologic study conducted in China found that the twelve-month (or less) prevalence of any mental disorder was 9.3%, while it was 5.0% for anxiety disorder, 3.6% for depressive disorder and 2% for PTSD. An old dated study (2004) conducted in Europe also reported that the twelve-month (or less) prevalence of anxiety disorder and major depression was 6.4% and 3.9%, respectively.

"Future research that examines the potentially manifold pathways to individual outcomes among sub-populations most at-risk will be instrumental in intervening in a cost-effective, effective and equitable manner", concluded the researchers.

Source: Medindia