The mental health impact of the current COVID-19 pandemic – new research findings

Much is known now about the physical Symptoms of the new Coronavirus (COVID-19) such as infection, such as fever, chills, cough, sore throat, myalgia, nausea and vomiting, and diarrhoea and also about risk factors, such as being male with a history of underlying diseases as well as an older age. Throughout the past 6 months, while society navigates the current new Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, health professionals have expressed concerned about the impact of COVID-19 pandemic on peoples’ mental health. Now new evidence is emerging, confirming many health professionals’ concerns regarding mental health and wellbeing at this time.

A newly published systematic review and meta-analysis synthesised existing research works and findings in relation to the prevalence of stress, anxiety and depression in the general population during the current pandemic. The key findings from this analysis were that the prevalence of stress in 5 studies with a total sample size of 9074 was 29.6% (95% confidence limit: 24.3–35.4), the prevalence of anxiety in 17 studies with a sample size of 63,439 was 31.9% (95% confidence interval: 27.5–36.7), and the prevalence of depression in 14 studies with a sample size of 44,531 people as 33.7% (95% confidence interval: 27.5–40.6). All significant higher than would be expected in non-pandemic times.

The review paper highlights many important contributors to the heightened population stress observed. The rapid transmission of COVID-19 and its rapid transmission, its high mortality rate, and concerns about the future are likely contributors to stress experiences such as heightened anxiety, which itself weakens the body’s immune system and consequently increases the risk of contracting the virus. The paper also highlights recent studies reporting that those in isolation and/or quarantine experience significant levels of anxiety, anger, confusion, and stress. The review also highlights research that suggests that frequent media exposure may also be a major contributor to an individual’s distress.

A notable observation in this review is that all of the studies that have examined the psychological disorders during the COVID-19 pandemic have reported that the affected individuals show several symptoms of mental trauma, such as emotional distress, depression, stress, mood swings, irritability, insomnia, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, post-traumatic stress, and anger. These studies are explored in this research paper, and bring to our attention to the need to self-monitor, be vigilant towards those around us during these unprecedented times on increased mental health risk. The review also highlights the importance to seek assistance and advice from qualified health professionals on how best to preserve mental wellbeing during these unpreceded challenging times.

Reference: Salari, N., Hosseinian-Far, A., Jalali, R. et al. Prevalence of stress, anxiety, depression among the general population during the COVID-19 pandemic: a systematic review and meta-analysis. Global Health 16, 57 (2020). Available at: https://doi.org/10.1186/s12992-020-00589-w

Useful resources:

Headspace https://headspace.org.au/

Beyond Blue  https://www.beyondblue.org.au/

Lifeline https://www.lifeline.org.au/

RUOK https://www.ruok.org.au/