Worsening of Preexisting Psychiatric Conditions During the COVID-19 Pandemic

• Main Authors: Susanna Gobbi, Martyna Beata Płomecka, Zainab Ashraf, Piotr Radziński, Rachael Neckels, Samuel Lazzeri, Alisa Dedić, Asja Bakalović, Lejla Hrustić, Beata Skórko, Sarvin Es haghi, Kristina Almazidou, Luis Rodríguez-Pino, A. Beyza Alp, Hafsa Jabeen, Verena Waller, Dana Shibli, Mehdi A. Behnam, Ahmed Hussain Arshad, Zofia Barańczuk-Turska, Zeeshan Haq, Salah U. Qureshi, Ali Jawaid
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: Frontiers Media S.A. 2020-12-01
• Series: Frontiers in Psychiatry
• Subjects: COVID-19; psychiatric patients; worsening; depression; post traumatic stress disorder; general psychological disturbance
• Online Access: https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpsyt.2020.581426/full

Objectives: To ascertain factors associated with worsening of psychiatric conditions during the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic.Methods: This study anonymously examined 2,734 psychiatric patients worldwide for worsening of their preexisting psychiatric conditions during the COVID-19 pandemic. An independent clinical investigation of 318 psychiatric patients from United States was used for verification.Results: Valid responses mainly from 12 featured countries indicated self-reported worsening of psychiatric conditions in two-thirds of the patients assessed that was through their significantly higher scores on scales for general psychological disturbance, posttraumatic stress disorder, and depression. Female gender, feeling no control of the situation, reporting dissatisfaction with the response of the state during the COVID-19 pandemic, and reduced interaction with family and friends increased the worsening of preexisting psychiatric conditions, whereas optimism, ability to share concerns with family and friends, and using social media like usual were associated with less worsening. An independent clinical investigation from the United States confirmed worsening of psychiatric conditions during the COVID-19 pandemic based on identification of new symptoms that necessitated clinical interventions such as dose adjustment or starting new medications in more than half of the patients.Conclusions: More than half of the patients are experiencing worsening of their psychiatric conditions during the COVID-19 pandemic.