Depression and anxiety during the COVID-19 pandemic in Saudi Arabia: a cross-sectional study

Alyami, Hamad S.; Naser, Abdallah Y; Dahmash, Eman Zmaily; Alyami, Mohammed H; Meanazel, Osama T. Al; Al-Meanazel, Ayat; Meanazel, Osaid Al

doi:10.1101/2020.05.09.20096677

Cited by 33 publications

(41 citation statements)

References 36 publications

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“…Based on the findings of the current study, around 35% of the students experienced some level of anxiety, with 13% having severe to extreme levels. This is consistent with the research done by Alyami et al (47), which looked at the anxiety level of the Saudi society during COVID-19 and reported 26% level of anxiety. Moreover, it is more or less similar to what was reported about students in Saudi Arabia before COVID-19 (25,27,28,33).…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 92%

“…The presence of COVID-19 is an additional factor for students to be stressed and anxious about (15). Several studies have addressed psychological well-being during the COVID-19 pandemic [e.g., (15,(47)(48)(49)] and other past epidemics [e.g., (6,(50)(51)(52)], either on students [e.g., (47)] or others [e.g., (21,(53)(54)(55)], who postulated that psychological health during pandemics must be addressed. Based on the findings of the current study, around 35% of the students experienced some level of anxiety, with 13% having severe to extreme levels.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Anxiety Level of University Students During COVID-19 in Saudi Arabia

et al. 2020

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COVID-19 is the worst pandemic of this millennium, and it is considered to be the “public enemy number one.” This catastrophe has changed the way we live in the blink of an eye. Not only has it threatened our existence and health status, but the damage associated with it could equally affect our economic, social, and educational systems. The focus of this study was on the anxiety level of university students during the COVID-19 pandemic in Saudi Arabia. The study was conducted between March and June 2020. A questionnaire was administered online, and 400 completed questionnaires were returned. In this study, the Zung self-rating anxiety scale was used to determine the anxiety levels among the respondents. The results indicated that about 35% of the students experienced moderate to extreme levels of anxiety. Anxiety was highly associated with age, sex, and level of education. These findings can enlighten government agencies and policy makers on the importance of making prompt, effective decisions to address students' anxiety during the COVID-19 pandemic. Researchers are encouraged to focus their future studies on how to develop strategies to boost students' resilience and enhance their adaptability skills for similar disasters in the future.

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Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 92%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Anxiety Level of University Students During COVID-19 in Saudi Arabia

et al. 2020

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“…A high level of anxiety was detected at the initial stage of the COVID-19 epidemic in China [6,7], Hong Kong [8] and Saudi Arabia [9]. More than half of the respondents rated the psychological impact as moderate, and about a third reported moderate anxiety [6].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…In addition to these people, particular attention should be paid to at-risk groups: elderly people and people with chronic diseases, children and adolescents, caregivers, unemployed persons, socially disadvantaged people and individuals with mental disorders [4]. Some social groups (people on a low income, retired or divorced people and students) have been found to be at a higher risk of depression, while unemployment is associated with the risk of anxiety [9]. The parents of children hospitalized due to the pandemic have also been found to show increased levels of anxiety and depression [13].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Impact of COVID-19 pandemic on anxiety, depression and distress – online survey results amid the pandemic in Russia

Karpenko¹,

Syunyakov²,

Kulygina³

et al. 2020

Consortium Psychiatricum

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Background. In 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic evoked a variety of research into the virus and its effects on mental health. A variety of mental health and psychological problems have been reported: stress, anxiety, depressive symptoms, insomnia, denial, stigma, anger and fear. Objectives. To assess the level of anxiety, depression and distress in the general population during the lockdown in Russia and to reveal factors associated with distress. Methods. An online survey was carried out from 22-27 April 2020 (the fourth week of lockdown) among the general population (mostly Moscow residents). The survey questions covered general information about people's social and demographic characteristics, experience of COVID-19, health condition (physical and mental), attitudes and views on the pandemic, and the need for psychological support. The survey included the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS) and evaluation of the preceding week's subjective distress level using a visual numeric scale (from 0 to 10). We also asked respondents to specify the causes of distress, adopted from the WHO information sheet relating to the major psychological challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic. Results. In total, 352 responses were collected (men = 74, women = 278; age (M ± SD) = 36.81 ± 11.36 y.o.). Most respondents (n = 225, 63.92%) did not have any personal experience of the coronavirus infection. Normal levels of anxiety and depression scores were prevalent in the sample. Higher than normal levels of HADS anxiety/ depression (> 7 scores) were observed in 105 (29.83%) and 59 (16.76%) respondents, respectively; mean (95% CI) scores for HADS anxiety/depression were 6.23 [5.77, 6.68] /4.65 [4.22, 5.08] (women) and 4.20 [3.32, 5.09] /3.46 [2.63, 4.29] (men), respectively. The leading causes of distress were: 1) the risk of financial problems in the future (n = 267, 76.3%); 2) violation of plans and the disruption to normal life (n = 235, 67.1%; and n = 240, 68.6%, respectively); 3) the health of elderly or chronically diseased relatives (n = 205, 58.6%) and 4) being in self-isolation (n = 186, 53.1%).

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“…Depression is linked to feelings of emotional loneliness, isolation, and exclusion [12]. There is some evidence that when curfew imposed to people, during the outbreak, younger people are more likely to experience anxiety [13], depression, and stress [13]. On the other hand, the social isolation particularly was prominent among older people during outbreak, they have been recognised as risky groups in terms of depression or suicide [14,15].…”

Section: Epidemiological Studies Conducted In Various Countries Havementioning

confidence: 99%

Depression risk of older people caused by social isolation during COVID-19 outbreak: A cluster analysis

Başıbüyük¹,

Kaleli²,

Efe³

et al. 2020

Arch Depress Anxiety

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COVID-19 pandemic required compulsory social isolations to control the transmission of infection, so people had to stay at home for months in most part of the world. Turkish government has imposed curfew for the people aged 65 and over, who are most affected by the devastating effects of COVID-19 disease. Curfew was imposed to protect the older people, but staying at home for months can cause negative psychological effects like depression. Here, we aimed to establish the depression tendency by using depression indicators such as insomnia, poor appetite, despair, weariness, anxiety/fear, dereliction, lack of concentration, anger and trashiness, in people aged 65 and over, who were exposed to curfew during COVID-19 outbreak. The participants (n: 119) of this study were the students of Tazelenme University, a third age university, of Antalya Campus. Cluster analyses recovered two clusters. Statistically signifi cant differences were found between the two clusters by mean comparison of values, according to age, years of education and household factors, while no statistically signifi cant differences were found in the distribution of the two clusters by gender. Participants of Cluster 2 (average age 64,40) appeared to be more affected than participants of Cluster 1 (average age 68,61) by the curfew during outbreak and were more tend to be depressive. The results indicated a relationship between curfew and depression.

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Depression and anxiety during the COVID-19 pandemic in Saudi Arabia: a cross-sectional study

Cited by 33 publications

References 36 publications

Anxiety Level of University Students During COVID-19 in Saudi Arabia

Anxiety Level of University Students During COVID-19 in Saudi Arabia

Impact of COVID-19 pandemic on anxiety, depression and distress – online survey results amid the pandemic in Russia

Depression risk of older people caused by social isolation during COVID-19 outbreak: A cluster analysis

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