Dataset Information

The Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic and Associated Control Measures on the Mental Health of the General Population : A Systematic Review and Dose-Response Meta-analysis.

ABSTRACT:

Background

To what extent the COVID-19 pandemic and its containment measures influenced mental health in the general population is still unclear.

Purpose

To assess the trajectory of mental health symptoms during the first year of the pandemic and examine dose-response relations with characteristics of the pandemic and its containment.

Data sources

Relevant articles were identified from the living evidence database of the COVID-19 Open Access Project, which indexes COVID-19-related publications from MEDLINE via PubMed, Embase via Ovid, and PsycInfo. Preprint publications were not considered.

Study selection

Longitudinal studies that reported data on the general population's mental health using validated scales and that were published before 31 March 2021 were eligible.

Data extraction

An international crowd of 109 trained reviewers screened references and extracted study characteristics, participant characteristics, and symptom scores at each timepoint. Data were also included for the following country-specific variables: days since the first case of SARS-CoV-2 infection, the stringency of governmental containment measures, and the cumulative numbers of cases and deaths.

Data synthesis

In a total of 43 studies (331 628 participants), changes in symptoms of psychological distress, sleep disturbances, and mental well-being varied substantially across studies. On average, depression and anxiety symptoms worsened in the first 2 months of the pandemic (standardized mean difference at 60 days, -0.39 [95% credible interval, -0.76 to -0.03]); thereafter, the trajectories were heterogeneous. There was a linear association of worsening depression and anxiety with increasing numbers of reported cases of SARS-CoV-2 infection and increasing stringency in governmental measures. Gender, age, country, deprivation, inequalities, risk of bias, and study design did not modify these associations.

Limitations

The certainty of the evidence was low because of the high risk of bias in included studies and the large amount of heterogeneity. Stringency measures and surges in cases were strongly correlated and changed over time. The observed associations should not be interpreted as causal relationships.

Conclusion

Although an initial increase in average symptoms of depression and anxiety and an association between higher numbers of reported cases and more stringent measures were found, changes in mental health symptoms varied substantially across studies after the first 2 months of the pandemic. This suggests that different populations responded differently to the psychological stress generated by the pandemic and its containment measures.

Primary funding source

Swiss National Science Foundation. (PROSPERO: CRD42020180049).

SUBMITTER: Salanti G

PROVIDER: S-EPMC9579966 | biostudies-literature | 2022 Oct

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

ACCESS DATA

Publications

The Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic and Associated Control Measures on the Mental Health of the General Population : A Systematic Review and Dose-Response Meta-analysis.

Salanti Georgia G Peter Natalie N Tonia Thomy T Holloway Alexander A White Ian R IR Darwish Leila L Low Nicola N Egger Matthias M Haas Andreas D AD Fazel Seena S Kessler Ronald C RC Herrman Helen H Kieling Christian C De Quervain Dominique J F DJF Vigod Simone N SN Patel Vikram V Li Tianjing T Cuijpers Pim P Cipriani Andrea A Furukawa Toshi A TA Leucht Stefan S Sambo Abdulkadir Usman AU Onishi Akira A Sato Akira A Rodolico Alessandro A Oliveira Solis Ana Cristina de AC Antoniou Anastasia A Kapfhammer Angelika A Ceraso Anna A O'Mahony Aoife A Lasserre Aurélie M AM Ipekci Aziz Mert AM Concerto Carmen C Zangani Caroline C Igwesi-Chidobe Chinonso C Diehm Christina C Demir Dicle Dilay DD Wang Dongfang D Ostinelli Edoardo Giuseppe EG Sahker Ethan E Beraldi Gabriel Henrique GH Erzin Gamze G Nelson Harrison H Elkis Helio H Imai Hissei H Wu Hui H Kamitsis Ilias I Filis Ioannis I Michopoulos Ioannis I Bighelli Irene I Hong James S W JSW Ballesteros Javier J Smith Katharine A KA Yoshida Kazufumi K Omae Kenji K Trivella Marialena M Tada Masafumi M Reinhard Matthias A MA Ostacher Michael J MJ Müller Monika M Jaramillo Nathalia Gonzalez NG Ferentinos Panagiotis P PP Toyomoto Rie R Cortese Samuele S Kishimoto Sanae S Covarrubias-Castillo Sergio A SA Siafis Spyridon S Thompson Trevor T Karageorgiou Vasilios V Chiocchia Virginia V Zhu Yikang Y Honda Yukiko Y

Annals of internal medicine 20221018 11

<h4>Background</h4>To what extent the COVID-19 pandemic and its containment measures influenced mental health in the general population is still unclear.<h4>Purpose</h4>To assess the trajectory of mental health symptoms during the first year of the pandemic and examine dose-response relations with characteristics of the pandemic and its containment.<h4>Data sources</h4>Relevant articles were identified from the living evidence database of the COVID-19 Open Access Project, which indexes COVID-19- ...[more]

PMID: 36252247

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Project description:ObjectivesMental health problems significantly increased worldwide during the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. At the early stage of the outbreak, the government of Bangladesh imposed lockdown and quarantine approaches to prevent the spread of the virus, which impacted people's daily life and health. The COVID-19 pandemic has also affected people's economic status, healthcare facilities and other lifestyle factors in Bangladesh. We aimed to assess the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on mental health among the Bangladeshi population.MethodsWe conducted an online cross-sectional survey among 672 Bangladeshi people aged between 15 and 65 years all over the country from 15 April to 10 May 2020. After obtaining electronic consent, we conducted a survey assessing people's sociodemographic profiles and psychometric measures. We used The University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) Loneliness Scale-8, Patient Health Questionnaire-9, Generalized Anxiety Disorder 7-Item Scale and Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index to assess loneliness, depression, anxiety and sleep disturbance, respectively.ResultsThe prevalence of loneliness, depression, anxiety and sleep disturbance was estimated at 71% (mild: 32%, moderate: 29%, severe: 10%), 38% (mild: 24%, moderate: 11%, severe: 3%), 64% (mild: 30%, moderate: 17%, severe: 17%) and 73% (mild: 50%, moderate: 18%, severe: 5%), respectively. In Bangladesh, the key factors associated with poor mental health during COVID-19 were female sex, unemployment, being a student, obesity and living without a family. The present study also identified statistically significant interrelationships among the measured mental health issues.ConclusionsA large portion of respondents reported mental health problems during the COVID-19 pandemic in Bangladesh. The present study suggests longitudinal assessments of mental health among Bangladeshi people to determine the gravity of this issue during and after the pandemic. Appropriate supportive programmes and interventional approaches would address mental health problems in Bangladesh during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Project description:Background: The COVID-19 pandemic is primarily a crisis that affects people's physical health. However, it is well-known from previous epidemics and pandemics that there are other indirect negative impacts on mental health, among others. The purpose of this scoping review was to explore and summarise primary empirical research evidence on how the COVID-19 pandemic and societal infection control measures have impacted children and adolescents' mental health. Methods: A literature search was conducted in five scientific databases: PubMed, APA PsycINFO, Web of Science, CINHAL, and Social Science Premium Collection. The search string was designed using the Population (0-18 years), Exposure (COVID-19), Outcomes (mental health) framework. Mental health was defined broadly, covering mental well-being to mental disorders and psychiatric conditions. Results: Fifty-nine studies were included in the scoping review. Of these, 44 were cross-sectional and 15 were longitudinal studies. Most studies reported negative impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on child and adolescent mental health outcomes, yet the evidence was mixed. This was also the case for studies investigating societal control measures. Strong resilience, positive emotion regulation, physical activity, parental self-efficacy, family functioning and emotional regulation, and social support were reported as protective factors. On the contrary, emotional reactivity and experiential avoidance, exposure to excessive information, COVID-19 school concerns, presence of COVID-19 cases in the community, parental mental health problems, and high internet, social media and video game use were all identified as potentially harmful factors. Conclusions: Due to the methodological heterogeneity of the studies and geographical variation, it is challenging to draw definitive conclusions about the real impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the mental health of children and adolescents. However, the existing body of research gives some insight to how parents, clinicians and policy makers can take action to mitigate the effects of COVID-19 and control measures. Interventions to promote physical activity and reduce screen time among children and adolescents are recommended, as well as parenting support programs.

Dataset Information

The Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic and Associated Control Measures on the Mental Health of the General Population : A Systematic Review and Dose-Response Meta-analysis.

Background

Purpose

Data sources

Study selection

Data extraction

Data synthesis

Limitations

Conclusion

Primary funding source

Publications

The Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic and Associated Control Measures on the Mental Health of the General Population : A Systematic Review and Dose-Response Meta-analysis.

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