Comparison of psychological symptoms between infected and non-infected COVID-19 health care workers

• Main Authors: Nami Mohammadian Khonsari, Gita Shafiee, Atefeh Zandifar, Sahar Mohammad Poornami, Hanieh-Sadat Ejtahed, Hamid Asayesh, Mostafa Qorbani
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: BMC 2021-03-01
• Series: BMC Psychiatry
• Subjects: Health care workers; COVID-19; PTSD; Depression; Anxiety; Stress
• Online Access: https://doi.org/10.1186/s12888-021-03173-7

Abstract Background Studies have shown that health care workers (HCWs), as front liners of the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, are at high risk for psychological symptoms, but few studies have compared these symptoms in infected and non-infected HCWs. This study compares psychological symptoms among these two groups. Methods In this cross-sectional study, 938 HCWs from various medical fields working in the leading general hospitals of Alborz province, Iran, were selected using a multistage sampling method. The participants had contact with COVID-19 patients. Post-traumatic stress disorder-8 (PTSD-8) is a validated questionnaire that we used to evaluate PTSD symptoms along with its subscales, including intrusion, avoidance, and hypervigilance. Also, the Depression, Anxiety, and Stress Scale-21 questionnaire was used to assess the severity of the aforementioned conditions in HCWs. Multivariate logistic regression was used to compare psychological symptoms in infected and non-infected HCWs. Results Among 938 included HCWs, 55 had a history of confirmed COVID-19 infection. Prevalence of stress, anxiety, depression, intrusion, hypervigilance, and avoidance among infected HCWs were significantly higher in comparison to non-infected HCWs. In the multivariate logistic model, history of COVID-19 infection among HCWs was associated with a significantly increased risk of anxiety, depression, stress, intrusion, hyper-vigilance, and avoidance. Conclusion The present study showed that the HCWs with COVID-19 infection were at a high risk of displaying psychological symptoms. Therefore, it is also necessary to develop psychological support and interventions for HCWs, especially those who got infected with the virus.