Depression, anxiety may increase chances of long-term COVID, says study – Harvard Gazette

Prior to COVID-19, emotional distress such as depression, anxiety, worry, perceived stress and loneliness were associated with increased risk of COVID-19 over time, according to researchers at the Harvard TH Chan School of Public Health. rice field. Increased risk was independent of smoking, asthma, and other health behaviors and physical health conditions.

“We were surprised by the association between pre-COVID-19 distress and increased risk of COVID-19 over time,” said Harvard Chan, who led the study. – said Siwen Wang, a researcher in the school’s nutrition department. “Distress was more strongly associated with her long-term COVID development than with physical health risk factors such as obesity, asthma, and hypertension.”

The study was published online today in JAMA Psychiatry.

According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, approximately 20% of American adults infected with COVID-19 experience COVID-19-related symptoms (fatigue, brain fog, respiratory, cardiac, neurological or gastrointestinal symptoms within 4 weeks of infection). Severe COVID-19 illness increases the risk of long-term COVID-19, but people with milder COVID-19 cases can also develop long-term COVID-19. Symptoms can last for months or years, and little is known about which traits are associated with prolonged COVID onset.

Mental health is known to influence the outcome of several diseases. Depression and other mental illnesses are associated with greater risk of severe COVID-19, including the risk of hospitalization, a risk factor for prolonged COVID-19. In other acute respiratory tract infections, such as influenza and the common cold, mental health conditions are associated with greater severity and longer duration of symptoms. Previous research also suggests that distress is associated with chronic conditions secondary to Lyme disease, and chronic fatigue syndrome and fibromyalgia.

Wang and her colleagues enrolled more than 54,000 people in April 2020 to examine the impact of pre-COVID-19 psychological distress on long-term COVID development. At the beginning of the study, researchers asked participants about their psychological distress. The following year, more than 3,000 participants contracted her COVID-19, and researchers asked the participant about her COVID-19 symptoms and duration of symptoms.

Analyzing responses and comparing those who had long-term COVID-19 versus those who did not, found that pre-COVID-19 distress including depression, anxiety, worry, perceived stress, and loneliness ranged from 32% to 46%. I concluded that it is related to %. Increased long-term risk of COVID. These types of distress were also associated with a 15% to 51% higher risk of his COVID-induced disability in daily life over time.

“To our knowledge, this is the first prospective study to show that a wide range of social and psychological factors are risk factors for long-term COVID and long-term COVID-induced disability.” Harvard Chan School of Environmental Health Department and senior author of the JAMA Psychiatry paper. “In addition to physical health, psychological health should be considered as a risk factor for prolonged COVID-19. These results also raise public awareness of the importance of mental health and “By increasing the supply of clinicians and improving access to care, we are increasing the need to provide mental health care to those who need it.”

Other Harvard Chang co-authors include Luwei Quan, Jorge Chavarro, Natalie Slopen, Laura Kubzansky, Karestan Koenen, and Marc Weisskopf.

This work was supported by the National Institutes of Health (3R01HD094725-02S1, U01HL145386, R24ES028521, U01 CA176726, R01 CA67262, and R01 HD057368). The Dean Fund for Accelerating Scientific Advances Award from the Harvard TH Chan School of Public Health. Evergrande COVID-19 Response Fund Award for Pathogen Preparedness of the Massachusetts Consortium, and the Department of Veterans Affairs (IIR 20-076, INV 20-099, IIR 20-101).