Increase in Mental Disorders During the COVID-19 Pandemic-The Role of Occupational and Financial Strains.

BACKGROUND: Numerous studies have reported an increase in mental disorders during the COVID-19 pandemic, but the exact reasons for this development are not well understood. In this study we investigate whether pandemic-related occupational and financial changes (e.g., reduced working hours, working from home, financial losses) were associated with increased symptoms of depression and anxiety compared with the situation before the pandemic. METHODS: We analyzed data from the German National Cohort (NAKO) Study. Between May and November 2020, 161 849 study participants answered questions on their mental state and social circumstances. Their responses were compared with data from the baseline survey before the pandemic (2014-2019). Linear fixed-effects models were used to determine whether individual changes in the severity of symptoms of depression (PHQ-9) or anxiety (GAD-7) were associated with occupational/ financial changes (controlling for various covariates). RESULTS: The prevalence of moderate or severe symptoms of depression and anxiety increased by 2.4% and 1.5%, respectively, during the COVID-19 pandemic compared with the preceding years. The mean severity of the symptoms rose slightly. A pronounced increase in symptoms was observed among those who became unemployed during the pandemic (+ 1.16 points on the depression scale, 95% confidence interval [0.91; 1.41], range 0-27). Increases were also seen for reduced working hours with no short-time allowance, increased working hours, working from home, insecurity regarding employment, and financial strain. The deterioration in mental health was largely statistically explained by the occupational and financial changes investigated in the model. CONCLUSION: Depressive symptoms and anxiety disorders increased slightly in the study population during the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic. Occupational and financial difficulties were an essential contributory factor. These strains should be taken into account both in the care of individual patients and in the planning of targeted prevention measures.

Interplay between the genetics of personality traits, severe psychiatric disorders and COVID-19 host genetics in the susceptibility to SARS-CoV-2 infection.

BACKGROUND: The severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) pandemic, with its impact on our way of life, is affecting our experiences and mental health. Notably, individuals with mental disorders have been reported to have a higher risk of contracting SARS-CoV-2. Personality traits could represent an important determinant of preventative health behaviour and, therefore, the risk of contracting the virus. AIMS: We examined overlapping genetic underpinnings between major psychiatric disorders, personality traits and susceptibility to SARS-CoV-2 infection. METHOD: Linkage disequilibrium score regression was used to explore the genetic correlations of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) susceptibility with psychiatric disorders and personality traits based on data from the largest available respective genome-wide association studies (GWAS). In two cohorts (the PsyCourse (n = 1346) and the HeiDE (n = 3266) study), polygenic risk scores were used to analyse if a genetic association between, psychiatric disorders, personality traits and COVID-19 susceptibility exists in individual-level data. RESULTS: We observed no significant genetic correlations of COVID-19 susceptibility with psychiatric disorders. For personality traits, there was a significant genetic correlation for COVID-19 susceptibility with extraversion (P = 1.47 × 10-5; genetic correlation 0.284). Yet, this was not reflected in individual-level data from the PsyCourse and HeiDE studies. CONCLUSIONS: We identified no significant correlation between genetic risk factors for severe psychiatric disorders and genetic risk for COVID-19 susceptibility. Among the personality traits, extraversion showed evidence for a positive genetic association with COVID-19 susceptibility, in one but not in another setting. Overall, these findings highlight a complex contribution of genetic and non-genetic components in the interaction between COVID-19 susceptibility and personality traits or mental disorders.

Outcomes associated with different vaccines in individuals with bipolar disorder and impact on the current COVID-19 pandemic- a systematic review.

Bipolar disorder (BD) might be associated with higher infection rates of coronavirus disease (COVID-19) which in turn could result in worsening the clinical course and outcome. This may be due to a high prevalence of somatic comorbidities and an increased risk of delays in and poorer treatment of somatic disease in patients with severe mental illness in general. Vaccination is the most important public health intervention to tackle the ongoing pandemic. We undertook a systematic review regarding the data on vaccinations in individuals with BD. Proportion of prevalence rates, efficacy and specific side effects of vaccinations and in individuals with BD were searched. Results show that only five studies have investigated vaccinations in individuals with BD, which substantially limits the interpretation of overall findings. Studies on antibody production after vaccinations in BD are very limited and results are inconsistent. Also, the evidence-based science on side effects of vaccinations in individuals with BD so far is poor.

[Loneliness during the first wave of the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic-results of the German National Cohort (NAKO)]. / Einsamkeit während der ersten Welle der SARS-CoV-2-Pandemie ­ Ergebnisse der NAKO-Gesundheitsstudie.

BACKGROUND: Early during the pandemic and the following protective countermeasures, an interest in the consequences of the enacted restriction of social contacts for the mental health of the population arose. Loneliness describes the perceived quality of one's own contacts and relationships with other individuals. Several prior studies reported associations of loneliness with different somatic and psychiatric disorders. AIM: To analyse the frequency of loneliness and its association with depression and anxiety symptoms in the first wave of the pandemic in Germany in May 2020. METHODS: The German National Cohort (NAKO) had recruited and examined 205,000 individuals aged 20 to 69 years in 18 study centres across Germany between 2014 and 2019. The follow-up examination was temporarily stopped due to the pandemic between March and July 2020. In this period a COVID-related questionnaire was developed and sent to all participants. We analysed the first 113,928 questionnaires that were sent back within four weeks in May 2020. Loneliness was assessed with the three-item UCLA Loneliness Scale and anxiety and depression symptoms were collected using the PHQ­9 and GAD­7 scales from the Patient Health Questionnaire. RESULTS: Among the NAKO participants, 31.7% reported to be lonely in May 2020. Women and young adults reported more loneliness than men and older adults. With increasing scores of loneliness, the severity of depression and anxiety symptoms also steadily increased. Individuals who were lonely during the pandemic had already reported higher PHQ­9 and GAD­7 scores during the baseline examination on average 2.5 years earlier, compared to those who did not feel lonely. CONCLUSIONS: Among participants of the German National Cohort, we observed an increase in loneliness during the first wave of the SARS-CoV­2 pandemic in spring 2020 and a strong relationship of increasing loneliness with decreasing mental health.