Severe Covid-19 is associated with an increased risk of long-term mental health problems, up to 16 months after illness, as shown a new international scientific research. She is the first to study in such a long time the impact on the mental health of patients who had a coronavirus and stayed in bed for more than a week due to their severe symptoms.
Most mental symptoms went away within two months of being diagnosed with the disease, but patients who took Covid-19 more heavily (even if they did not need to be treated) were more likely than those who did not stay in bed at all. they experience depression, stress and insomnia for many months after recovering from the infection.
The researchers, led by Professor Unur Ana Valdimarsdottir of the University of Iceland, published their findings in the journal The Lancet Public Health, analyzing data from six countries (Britain, Sweden, Denmark, Denmark, Denmark). ), including a total of 247,249 people, of whom 9,979 (4%) were diagnosed with Covid-19 in 2020 or 2021.
The latter had higher rates of depression and insomnia (20.2% and 29.4%) than those who had never been diagnosed with Covid-19 (11.3% and 23.8% respectively). The study found a clear correlation between how long a patient with Covid-19 had stayed in bed and how long afterward he still had depression or insomnia. After 16 months, those who had stayed in bed for more than seven days were still 50 to 60% more likely to be depressed and anxious than those who had never been sick with Covid-19.
On the other hand, those who have a mild illness with Covid-19 are less likely to develop mental disorders, such as depression and anxiety, than those who have never been diagnosed with coronavirus. One of the researchers’ explanations for this is that returning to normal life was a great relief for the first, while those who were never infected with coronavirus continued to be anxious lest they get sick because of it.
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