Comparison of Prevalence and Risk Factors of PTSS Between Chinese Patients With Depression and Non-depressed Controls During COVID-19 Outbreak

Abstract

Background: COVID-19 pandemic is a traumatic event all over the world, and may lead to post-traumatic stress symptom (PTSS) in different population who are under the threat of novel corona virus. Therefore, the aim of our study was to compare the prevalence and risk factors of PTSS between Chinese patients with depression and non-depressed controls during the COVID-19 outbreak.Methods: 437 depressed patients and 2,940 non-depressed controls were enrolled in this cross-sectional study between February 14 and May 9, 2020.The Impact of Events Scale-Revised (IES-R), Zung Self-Rating Depression Scale (SDS), Zung Self-Rating Anxiety Scale (SAS) and Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI) were used to evaluate the psychological status of all the participants.Results: The prevalence of PTSS (IES-R ≥ 33) in depressed patients (45.08%) was higher than that in non-depressed controls (5.31%). Patients with depression were 16 times more likely to suffer from PTSS than those without depression. Correlation analyses showed that the IES-R total score was positively correlated with SDS, SAS, and PSQI scores in both depressed and non-depressed groups (Bonferroni corrected all p < 0.001). Multiple linear regression analysis showed that SAS score, and PSQI score were independently associated with IES-R total score in both depression and non-depression groups. In depressed patients, education level and duration of media exposure to COVID-19 were positively associated with PTSS, while in the non-depressed group, subjects who were married, in the 31–50 year group or with higher SDS score were more likely to develop PTSS.Conclusions: These results indicate that the prevalence rate of PTSS in patients with depression is very higher than that in subjects without depression. PTSS are associated with a number of socio-demographic and clinical variables.

An Online Survey on the Relationship Between Positive Coping and Post-Traumatic Stress Symptoms (PTSS) of Medical Students in China During the COVID-19 Pandemic: The Mediating Role of Social Support

“…A study found that depression is significantly associated with PTSS. The incidence of PTSS in patients with depression during the epidemic was 16 times higher than that in normal controls [ 41 ].…”

Does COVID-19 related symptomatology indicate a transdiagnostic neuropsychiatric disorder? - Multidisciplinary implications

“…Since the outbreak of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, increasing evidence revealed several psychiatric diagnoses suspected as being involved in the reaction of the general population to the pandemic and its related stressors. The majority of the studies investigated the comorbidity of depression and anxiety[ 1 - 4 ] and others added stress[ 5 - 9 ] and posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD)[ 10 - 14 ]. However, many others found a significant incidence of other symptoms that are not clearly related to these comorbidities as outlined in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-5) and International Classification of Diseases (ICD-11): Latent infection phobia[ 15 ], OCD symptoms[ 16 - 19 ], somatization[ 20 ], health anxiety[ 19 , 21 ], internet gaming disorder[ 22 , 23 ], reports of repeated nightmares with virus-related narratives and intrusive thoughts, change in dream recall frequency[ 24 ], addictive social media use[ 25 , 26 ], thoughts of self-injury or suicide[ 27 - 31 ], emotional eating and binge eating[ 32 ], antisocial behavior, and substance abuse to relieve stress or boredom[ 33 ].…”