Comparing mental health status and COVID-19 event impact between survivors and the general population during the second wave of the pandemic in Iran.
Maryam Hasannezhad Reskati, Motahareh Kheradmand, Mahmood Moosazadeh and 5 others
PMID 36017940WHAT IT FOUND
Outpatient survivors had the highest PTSD severity and the most severe-to-very-severe anxiety, depression and stress.
Hospitalized survivors had higher anxiety than the general population.
Key findings
01The IES-R mean score was highest in outpatient survivors (30.30 ± 15.47), then the general population (29.39 ± 16.45), then hospitalized survivors (26.27 ± 16.73).
02General population and outpatient survivors did not differ significantly in mean PTSD severity (p = .349), but both scored significantly higher than hospitalized survivors (p = .005 and p = .002).
03Severe-to-very-severe anxiety was most frequent in outpatient survivors (46.2%), hospitalized survivors (31.3%), and the general population (20.8%).
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for RNs
Read the rest of this summary
You get three full summaries a month, free, and we do not ask for a card. Search, the TL;DRs and your library stay unlimited either way.
What it does not show
The survey was cross-sectional, so it cannot show that COVID-19 or survivor status caused the mental health scores. Participants self-reported depression, anxiety, stress and PTSD symptoms; these scores may not match mental health professional assessments. Sampling was online and convenience-based, so only literate people with internet access were included. People with lower education, economic restrictions or no smartphone access were not represented. Results came from one province in Iran during the second wave, so they may not apply to other countries or later waves. Clinical and laboratory data were not measured, although they could be associated with depression symptoms. The study reports both simple group comparisons and adjusted comparisons, and they do not always point the same way, so the size and direction of group differences depend on the analysis used.
Declared interests
The study was financially supported by Mazandaran University of Medical Sciences, Sari, Iran. The authors declared no competing interests.
The easy way to misread this
Do not read this as evidence that hospitalization causes worse PTSD, anxiety or depression. The survey was cross-sectional and self-reported, outpatient survivors had the highest PTSD severity, and some survivor-general population differences were not significant.