Emerging Psychiatric Themes in Post-COVID-19 Patients on a Psychiatry Consultation-liaison Service

Abstract

The need for consultation-liaison psychiatry on COVID-19 wards has substantially increased since the start of the pandemic. In this cross-sectional study, we aimed to summarize the characteristics of patients admitted to the post-COVID-19 ward of the American University of Beirut Medical Center who received a psychiatric consultation. We collected relevant sociodemographic and medical data, information about past psychiatric history, psychiatry consultation details, hospital course, and disposition outcome. We also conducted chi-square and binary logistic regression analyses to assess the association between the different variables and disposition outcome. A total of 52 patients (mean age 57.33 years; equal gender distribution) were seen by the psychiatry consult-liaison team. Most had medical comorbidities and 21.2% required intubation. The most prevalent psychiatric diagnoses were delirium (30.8%), major depressive episode (15.4%), and other anxiety disorder (15.4%). Pharmacological management was implemented in 90.4% of cases and mainly included second-generation antipsychotics (36.5%). Non-pharmacological interventions consisted of those related to delirium and therapy for anxiety. Only intubation was significantly associated with disposition outcome ( p = 0.004). This study highlights the various psychiatric themes emerging during the acute and post-acute periods of hospitalization for COVID-19. Hospitalized individuals recovering from the infection should be diligently screened and referred to the psychiatry consultation-liaison team to ensure the implementation of appropriate interventions.

Epidemiological and clinical profile of COVID-19 patients with psychiatric disorders admitted to Udayana University Hospital during the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic

“…Psychiatric disorders are experienced by a majority of the public and health workers. Several studies state that COVID-19 patients experience symptoms in the form of anxiety, insomnia, and depression [4,5]. Patients with psychiatric disorders experience these symptoms after being hospitalised for about one month [5].…”

“…Several studies state that COVID-19 patients experience symptoms in the form of anxiety, insomnia, and depression [4,5]. Patients with psychiatric disorders experience these symptoms after being hospitalised for about one month [5]. This is a concern for health workers to treat psychiatric disorders in survivors of COVID-19 [4].…”