Delirium, PTSD, Depression And Anxiety - Mental Disorders In Coronaviruses Described

Delirium, PTSD, Depression and Anxiety - Mental Disorders in Coronaviruses Described

Scientists analyzed 72 studies on mental disorders in various coronavirus infections. They highlighted the most likely problems that patients, doctors and society can face.

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After COVID-19, people may be more likely to experience certain long-term mental disorders, including depression and anxiety. During the acute period of illness, patients may develop confusion, mental agitation, and delirium (clouding of consciousness with impaired behavior, sometimes accompanied by hallucinations).

Scientists have summarized all the available evidence of mental changes associated with SARS-CoV-2 and other severe coronavirus infections in an article published in The Lancet Psychiatry. The authors reviewed 72 studies that focused on COVID-19, severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS), and Middle East respiratory syndrome (MERS).

In patients with COVID-19 with a severe course of the disease, signs of mental agitation, confusion, and delirium were quite common. For example, changes in consciousness occurred in 17 of the 82 terminally ill intensive care patients included in the studies reviewed.

According to available information, following SARS and MERS, patients discharged from hospitals were at increased risk of fatigue, anxiety, depression, and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).

The amount of information about patients after COVID-19 is now extremely limited, and the quality of studies that included patients who underwent SARS and MERS was described by scientists as predominantly low. In addition, there is completely no information about possible mental changes in people who have had asymptomatic illness. These limitations do not allow today to give a more detailed picture of the mental problems associated with coronavirus infections.

In a commentary that accompanied this study, Iris Sommer, lead author of the work, noted that data from previous outbreaks of coronavirus infections are useful, but they may not accurately predict the prevalence of mental illness in COVID-19. However, this information is important for the psychiatric community, which must be ready to treat large numbers of patients with delirium, PTSD, depression and anxiety associated with COVID-19.

The scientists added that both infected and uninfected people can suffer from mental problems as a result of traumatic experiences during a pandemic. These problems can include stress in health workers, fear of unemployment and financial hardship, and social isolation.