Background Reports of psychiatric morbidity associated with severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection tend to be limited by geography and patients’ clinical status. Representative samples are needed to inform service planning and research. Aims To describe the psychiatric morbidity associated with SARS-CoV-2 infection (confirmed by real-time polymerase chain reaction) in referrals to a consultation-liaison psychiatry service in Qatar. Method Retrospective review of 50 consecutive referrals. Results Most patients were male. Median age was 39.5 years. Thirty-one patients were symptomatic (upper respiratory tract symptoms or pneumonia) for coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) and 19 were asymptomatic (no characteristic physical symptoms of COVID-19 infection). Seventeen patients (34%) had a past psychiatric history including eight with bipolar I disorder or psychosis, all of whom relapsed. Thirty patients (60%) had physical comorbidity. The principal psychiatric diagnoses made by the consultation-liaison team were delirium (n = 13), psychosis (n = 9), acute stress reaction (n = 8), anxiety disorder (n = 8), depression (n = 8) and mania (n = 8). Delirium was confined to the COVID-19 symptomatic group (the exception being one asymptomatic patient with concurrent physical illness). The other psychiatric diagnoses spanned the symptomatic and asymptomatic patients with COVID. One patient with COVID-19 pneumonia experienced an ischaemic stroke. Approximately half the patients with mania and psychosis had no past psychiatric history. Three patients self-harmed. The commonest psychiatric symptoms were sleep disturbance (70%), anxiety (64%), agitation (50%), depressed mood (42%) and irritability (36%). Conclusions A wide range of psychiatric morbidity is associated with SARS-CoV-2 infection and is seen in symptomatic and asymptomatic individuals. Cases of psychosis and mania represented relapses in people with schizophrenia and bipolar disorder and also new onset cases.

SettingThe State of Qatar has had one of the highest COVID-19 infection rates globally and has used state-managed quarantine and isolation centres to limit the spread of infection. Quarantine and isolation have been shown to negatively affect the mental health of individuals. Qatar has a unique population, with around 90% of the population being economic migrants and a majority being blue-collar workers and labourers.ObjectivesThis study was carried out to evaluate the psychological impact of institutional isolation and quarantine during the COVID-19 pandemic outbreak in Qatar. The study also explored the sociodemographic correlates of this psychological impact.Design, participants and interventionA cross-sectional study involving 748 consenting individuals in institutional quarantine and isolation in Qatar during the months of June and July 2020 was carried out. Relevant sociodemographic data along with depressive and anxiety symptomatology scores were collected from consenting adults at these facilities.Results37.4% (n=270) of respondents reported depressive symptoms and 25.9% (n=189) reported anxiety symptoms. The scores were higher for individuals in isolation facilities and higher for migrants from poor socioeconomic group (p<0.001 for both). Within this group, although worries about infection were widely reported, lack of contact with the family was cited as one of the most important sources of distress. Respondents reported that contact with the family and reliable information were important factors that helped during the duration of isolation and quarantine.ConclusionsOur study reported significantly elevated scores for depression and anxiety during institutional quarantine, which is in keeping with emerging evidence. However, in contrast to other studies reporting mostly from native populations, this study of a population with an overwhelming majority of immigrants highlights the special mental health needs of this specific group and can inform future healthcare policies.

A 30-year-old man with no significant previous or family psychiatric history became severely anxious about his health after a positive COVID-19 test. Physical symptoms of COVID-19 were mild, with no evidence of hypoxia or pneumonia, throughout his illness. He was admitted to a quarantine facility. He remained highly anxious, and 1 week later, he developed paranoid delusions and auditory hallucinations (his first psychotic episode). He was treated with lorazepam 1 mg four times a day, mirtazapine 30 mg nocte and risperidone 1 mg two times a day. His psychotic symptoms lasted 1 week. He stopped psychiatric medication after 4 weeks and had remained well when reviewed 3 months later. A Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders fifth edition diagnosis of brief psychotic disorder with marked stressor (brief reactive psychosis) was made. Anxiety about his health and social isolation appeared the main aetiological factors but an inflammatory component cannot be excluded. The case highlights that first episode psychosis can be associated with mild COVID-19.

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Delirious mania (the coexistence of delirium and mania) is described in the literature but not recognised in standard nosologies. We report a woman in her late 30s, with no psychiatric history, who presented with concurrent symptoms of mania and delirium. She was diagnosed with COVID-19 pneumonia (positive reverse transcription-PCR test). There was no history of substance misuse or concurrent medical illness. CT head scan was normal as were blood investigations, other than elevated inflammatory markers. She received standard treatment for COVID-19 pneumonia and lorazepam and quetiapine to treat her neuropsychiatric symptoms. She made a full recovery after 9 days. She was apyrexial with normal oxygen saturation throughout her illness. The case shows that severe neuropsychiatric symptoms can complicate otherwise mild COVID-19 pneumonia with neuroinflammation being a possible mechanism. A diagnosis of delirious mania appears to better capture the complexity of the presentation than a diagnosis of mania or delirium alone.