Adjustment disorder, traumatic stress, depression and anxiety in Poland during an early phase of the COVID-19 pandemic

Abstract

Background:The current COVID-19 pandemic is associated with a variety of stressors. Preliminary research has demonstrated that general public are experiencing a range of psychological problems, including stress-related disturbances. However, to date, there is not much research on the prevalence of adjustment disorder during the current pandemic. Objectives: This study aimed to assess the prevalence and severity of symptoms of adjustment disorder compared to posttraumatic symptoms, depression and generalized anxiety in a large sample of adult Poles, in the first phase of the current pandemic. Method: Self-report data from a web-based sample (N = 1,742) was collected between March 25 and April 27, just after the introduction of nationwide quarantine measures in Poland. Results: The current COVID-19 pandemic was a highly stressful event for 75% of participants and the strongest predictor of adjustment disorder. Increased symptoms of adjustment disorder were reported by 49%, and they were associated with female gender and not having a full-time job. However, after exclusion of co-occurring symptomatology, 14% of the sample were finally qualified as meeting diagnostic criteria of adjustment disorder. A substantial proportion of the sample screened also positive for generalized anxiety (44%) and depression (26%); the rate for presumptive PTSD diagnosis was 2.4%. Conclusions: High rates of negative mental health outcomes were found in the Polish population in the first weeks into the COVID-19 pandemic and lockdown measures. They indicate the intense current stress-related symptoms in the early phase of the pandemic and warrant further monitoring on population's mental health. Trastorno de adaptación, estrés traumático, depresión y ansiedad en Polonia durante una fase temprana de la pandemia del COVID-19Antecedentes: La actual pandemia de COVID-19 está asociada con una variedad de estresores. Investigaciones preliminares han demostrado que la población general está experimentando una variedad de problemas psicológicos, incluyendo trastornos relacionados con el estrés. Sin embargo, hasta la fecha no hay mucha investigación acerca de la prevalencia de trastornos de adaptación durante la actual pandemia. Objetivos: Este estudio tuvo como objetivo evaluar la prevalencia y severidad de los síntomas del trastorno adaptativo comparado con los síntomas postraumáticos, depresión y ansiedad generalizada en una gran muestra de adultos polacos, en la primera fase de la actual pandemia. Método: Se recolectó información auto-reportada de una muestra basada en la web (N=1.742) entre el 25 de marzo y el 27 de Abril, justo después de la introducción de medidas de cuarentena a nivel nacional en Polonia. Resultados: La pandemia actual de COVID-19 fue un evento altamente estresante para el 75% de los participantes y el predictor más poderoso de trastorno de adaptación. 49% informó un aumento de síntomas de trastorno de adaptación, y se asociaron con género femenino y no tener trabajo de tiempo completo. Sin embargo, después de la exclusión ...

Risk and protective factors, stressors, and symptoms of adjustment disorder during the COVID-19 pandemic – First results of the ESTSS COVID-19 pan-European ADJUST study

“…Female gender was associated with higher AjD symptom levels. Two earlier studies found positive associations between female gender and selfreported symptoms of AjD during the initial phase of the COVID-19 pandemic (Dragan et al, 2021;Rossi et al, 2020). Additional studies reported relationships between female gender and psychological distress, anxiety, and depression during the pandemic (Liu et al, 2020;Mazza et al, 2020;Rossi et al, 2020).…”

Defense Mechanisms and Borderline Personality Organization Among COVID-19 Believers and Non-believers During Complete Lock-Down

“…Perceptions and attitudes toward negative and powerful life events can be related to the type of defense mechanisms an individual employs and the level of functioning of the ego ( 1 ). To many people a sudden shift in their everyday lives due to the recent COVID-19 pandemic and lock-down could have been a traumatizing event and may have triggered the use of maladaptive defense mechanisms ( 2 , 3 ). That could be especially true among individuals with weaker ego, who use more maladaptive defense mechanisms ( 4 ).…”

Predicting transitions between longitudinal classes of posttraumatic stress disorder, adjustment disorder, and well-being during the COVID-19 pandemic: Protocol of a latent transition model in a general Dutch sample

“…In recent reviews a variety of psychological problems have been identified across studies on COVID-19 pandemic-related mental health effects [1][2][3][4]. One of the most commonly reported mental health problems during the pandemic are disturbances in stress reactions, such as posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms and adjustment disorder (AD) [5][6][7]. For instance, a meta-analysis found a pooled prevalence of post-pandemic PTSD of 23% [8] and two studies from the UK and Poland reported AD prevalence rates during the COVID-19 pandemic of 16% and 49%, respectively [5,6].…”

“…One of the most commonly reported mental health problems during the pandemic are disturbances in stress reactions, such as posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms and adjustment disorder (AD) [5–7]. For instance, a meta-analysis found a pooled prevalence of post-pandemic PTSD of 23% [8] and two studies from the UK and Poland reported AD prevalence rates during the COVID-19 pandemic of 16% and 49%, respectively [5,6]. These rates are higher than one-year prevalence rates of 4-5% PTSD [9,10] and point prevalence rate of 1% of AD [11] found in the general population before the pandemic.…”

“…Furthermore, we expect to identify a class with severe symptomatology (high AD and PTSD symptoms) and low well-being (class 2) [21,27]. Considering findings on mental health prevalence from cross-sectional studies of COVID-19 pandemic responses [6], we also expect a class of individuals with difficulties adjusting (moderate to high AD symptoms) and moderate/low well-being, but who do not show traumatic responses (low PTSD symptoms; class 3), and a class for whom PTSD symptoms are at the forefront (high PTSD) and moderate/low well-being, but who experience moderate/low adjustment difficulties (class 4) [28,29]. Lastly, in line with the dual continua model, we expect a class that shows elevated AD and PTSD symptomatology while maintaining moderate to high well-being levels (class 5) [17,27].…”