New Study Shows 1 in 5 COVID-19 Patients Develop Mental Illness Within 90 Days

The global pandemic has been wreaking havoc for close to a year now, with many countries still experiencing the repercussions.

For patients, they fight hard with the virus which affects their overall immune system.

Other than the physical aspects, patients might also be worried about things such as their recovery speed.

This might prove to be true as a recent study revealed that the virus has an impact on a patient’s mental health.

Anxiety, Depression and Insomnia Among the Most Common Mental Health Issues Covid-19 Patients Face

According to researchers, some of the more common mental health problems faced by patients who have recovered from Covid-19 are anxiety, depression and insomnia.

In addition, the researchers also found significantly higher risks of dementia among Covid-19 survivors.

The study, which was published in The Lancet Psychiatry journal (this basically means it’s not just hearsay from your uncle on WhatsApp, but real facts), analysed electronic health records of 69 million people in the US, including more than 62,000 Covid-19 cases.

Mental Health Conditions Surfaced Three Months After Being Tested Positive for Covid-19

According to the researchers, in the three months following being tested positive for Covid-19, one in five were recorded as having a first-time diagnosis of anxiety, depression or insomnia.

This implies that 20% of those with Covid-19 are diagnosed with a psychiatric disorder within 90 days.

This was about twice as likely as compared to other groups of patients in the same period.

The study also found that people with a pre-existing mental illness were 65% more likely to be diagnosed with Covid-19 than those without.

Mental health specialists who were not directly involved in the study said the findings add to growing evidence that Covid-19 can affect the brain and mind, thereby increasing the risk of a range of psychiatric illnesses.

According to Mr Michael Bloomfield, a consultant psychiatrist at University College London, he mentioned that this might be due to the psychological stressors and the physical effects of Covid-19.

What this means is that while medical attention is important, a patient’s mental health should also be taken care too.

Sir Simon Wessely, regius professor of psychiatry at King’s College London, mentioned that the research results are similar to other findings in previous infectious disease outbreaks.

He added that as the virus affects the central nervous system, thus it might directly increase subsequent disorders.

The research has brought up the fact that the risk of subsequent disorders can also be increased by previous mental conditions.

On the other hand, there’s been some goody news as Pfizer has just announced positive results from its trials for its vaccine, and you can read this article on why it’s such a big deal.

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