Impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on mental health
The international journal Frontiers in Psychiatry published the work of the Translational Neuroscience and Aging Program Research Group in collaboration with the research group Kardiovize led by Dr. Juan Pablo Gonzalez Rivas – both from the International Clinical Research Center of St. Anne’s University Hospital Brno – and the Mayo Clinic in the United States.
A multidisciplinary team led by dr. Stokin focused on the analysis of the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic and related anti-epidemic measures in the spring of 2020 on the mental health of the Kardiovize study population and on the role of selected risk factors on mental health changes.
“The results showed that the prevalence of increased stress and the presence of depressive symptoms increased 1.4-fold to 5.5-fold compared to the period before the COVID-19 pandemic,” said the first author of the study, Dr. Novotný. This deterioration was seen in all age groups and was more pronounced in women. The main risk factors associated with this increased prevalence have been feelings of loneliness, perceptions of COVID-19 as threatening, and some negative lifestyle effects (sleep quality, exercise, financial implications). On the contrary, a higher level of resilience proved to be a protective factor.
The results of this study support previous findings about the significant impact of the COVID-19 pandemic not only on the physical health of the population (or its economic and social functionality), but also on mental health and point to the need to respond to this threat in a timely and targeted manner. to reduce the risk of a subsequent pandemic of mental disorders in the population. The study’s research team continues this study in an effort to capture long-term changes in mental health as the COVID-19 pandemic continues to grow.
The article can be found here:
