Psychological impact of the COVID-19 pandemic and lockdown in a Spanish sample with anxiety disorder: sex differences.

The early psychological impact of the COVID-19 pandemic and lockdown is greater in people with mental disorders. This study explored the differences in the psychological impact on people with an anxiety disorder by sex in Spain.

Impact of the coronavirus outbreak on mental health in the different Spanish regions

Introduction. COVID-19 is an infectious disease that has affected millions of people worldwide, Spain being one of the countries most affected by the pandemic. It is key to study its impact on the mental health of the Spanish population during the lockdown situation. The aim is to analyse maladaptive responses in each autonomous community during the first two weeks after the state of emergency was declared in Spain. Material and Methods. Through an online questionnaire, clinical and sociodemographic information was collected from participants between 19 and 26 March 2020. The DASS-21 and the IES questionnaires were used to evaluate the maladaptive psychological responses. Results. A total of 21,152 people completed the questionnaire. Mean age was 39.75 (SD 14.039), and 69.6% were women. Most of the participants lived in Asturias (36.2%) and Cantabria (11.9%). In the sample as a whole, among the maladaptive responses, depressive symptoms represented the highest percentage (46.7%), followed by stress (33.2%) and anxiety (10.7%) symptoms. The results of the DASS-21 revealed that a higher proportion of the people from Andalusia [N=1979 (9.3%))]were affected in all three domains: depressive (59.7%), stress (41.7 %), and anxiety (16.2%) symptoms, Castilla La Mancha had the highest percentage of intrusive response (31.2%), while Andalusia had the highest percentage of avoidance behaviour (55.7%). Conclusions. Almost half of the sample showed maladaptive reactions, depressive symptoms and avoidance behaviour being the most common responses. Repercussions on mental health during and after large-scale traumatic events should be addressed carefully to minimize maladaptive responses in the general population. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2022 APA, all rights reserved) (Spanish) Introduccion. La COVID-19 es una enfermedad infecciosa que esta afectando a millones de personas alrededor del mundo, siendo Espana uno de los paises mas afectados por la pandemia. Es fundamental evaluar el impacto de la salud mental de la poblacion espanola durante el periodo de confinamiento. El objetivo es analizar las respuestas desadaptativas en cada comunidad autonoma durante las dos primeras semanas tras la declaracion del estado de alarma en Espana. Metodologia. A traves de un cuestionario "online", se recogieron variables clinicas y sociodemograficas de los participantes del 19 al 26 de marzo. Para estudiar las respuestas desadaptativas, se utilizaron los cuestionarios DASS-21 y EIE. Resultados. 21.152 personas completaron el cuestionario. La edad media fue 39,75 (DE 14,039) y el 69,6 % eran mujeres. La mayoria de los participantes vivia en Asturias (36,2 %) y Cantabria (11,9 %). La respuesta desadaptativa mas frecuente de la muestra fueron los sintomas depresivos (46,7 %), seguida del estres (33,2 %) y la ansiedad (10,7 %). Los resultados de la DASS-21 desvelaron que en Andalucia [N = 1979 (9,3 %)] se observo un mayor porcentaje en los tres dominios: sinto-mas depresivos (59,7 %), estres (41,7 %) y ansiedad (16,2 %). Castilla-La Mancha tuvo el porcentaje mas alto de respuesta intrusiva (31,2 %) y Andalucia de respuesta evitativa (55,7 %). Conclusiones. Casi la mitad de la muestra presento respuestas desadaptativas, siendo los sintomas depresivos y la conducta evitativa las mas frecuentes. El impacto sobre la salud mental durante y tras eventos traumaticos de gran escala deberia de abordarse minuciosamente para minimizar las respuestas desadaptativas en la poblacion general. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2022 APA, all rights reserved)

COVID-19 lockdown in people with severe mental disorders in Spain: Do they have a specific psychological reaction compared with other mental disorders and healthy controls?

The COVID-19 pandemic and the lockdown restrictions could have adverse consequences for patients with severe mental disorders (SMD). Here, we aim to compare the early psychological impact (depression, anxiety, and stress responses, intrusive and avoidant thoughts, and coping strategies) on people with SMD (n = 125) compared with two control groups: common mental disorders (CMD, n = 250) and healthy controls (HC, n = 250). An anonymous online questionnaire using a snowball sampling method was conducted from March 19-26, 2020 and included sociodemographic and clinical data along with the DASS-21 and IES scales. We performed descriptive and bivariate analyses and multinomial and linear regression models. People with SMD had higher anxiety, stress, and depression responses than HC, but lower scores than CMD in all domains. Most people with SMD (87.2%) were able to enjoy free time, although control groups had higher percentages. After controlling for confounding factors, anxiety was the only significant psychological domain with lower scores in HC than people with SMD (OR = 0.721; 95% CI: 0.579-0.898). In the SMD group, higher anxiety was associated with being single (beta = 0.144), having COVID-19 symptoms (beta = 0.146), and a higher score on the stress subscale of DASS-21 (beta = 0.538); whereas being able to enjoy free time was a protective factor (beta = -0.244). Our results showed that patients with SMD reacted to the pandemic and the lockdown restrictions with higher anxiety levels than the general public, and suggesting this domain could be a criterion for early intervention strategies and closer follow-up.