Loneliness in U.S. military veterans during the COVID-19 pandemic: A nationally representative, prospective cohort study

Psychological consequences among veterans during the COVID-19 pandemic: A scoping review

“…The prevalence of probable alcohol use during the pandemic ranged from 9.6% to 47.4%, and the veterans infected with COVID-19 had a remarkably higher rate of alcohol use than those uninfected( Hendrikx et al, 2022 ; Kelly et al, 2022 ; Murphy et al, 2022a ; Murphy et al, 2022b ; Na et al, 2022a ; Na et al, 2021a ; Na et al, 2022b ; Richardson et al, 2022 ; Sharp et al, 2021 ). Nonetheless, the impact of COVID-19 on alcohol use in veterans was inconsistent across studies.…”

“…On the other hand, there was no significant difference between the two groups in Alyson's study( Mahar et al, 2022 ). Severe symptoms of loneliness were related to health and social care workers, poor social and family relationships (e.g., not being married or partnered/living alone, being responsible for one or more children, having caring responsibilities, difficulties with health, and experiencing boredom), having psychotic disorders, recent homelessness experience, and COVID-19-related stress( Na et al, 2022b ; Sharp et al, 2021 ; Wynn et al, 2021 ).…”

“…Nine studies mentioned the resilience factors of psychological impact on veterans during the pandemic( Chen et al, 2022 ; Davis et al, 2021 ; Fitzke et al, 2021 ; Hendrikx et al, 2022 ; Na et al, 2022a ; Na et al, 2021a ; Na et al, 2022b ; Na et al, 2021b ; Wynn et al, 2021 ). The results suggested that higher household income and greater community interaction were correlated with a lower risk of mental disorders( Na et al, 2022a ; Na et al, 2021a ; Nichter et al, 2021 ).…”

“…Additionally, one study showed that women, racial/ethnic minority veterans, and those with pre-existing PTSD exhibited relatively reduced alcohol use( Davis et al, 2021 ). Furthermore, being married or partnered was linked to alleviated loneliness( Na et al, 2022b ). For individuals, having a purpose in life was a potential protective factor for SI( Nichter et al, 2021 ).…”

“…In addition, the prevalence of depression in the USA was 8.6%-55.1%( Chen et al, 2022 ; Fitzke et al, 2021 ; Hill et al, 2021 ; Kelly et al, 2022 ; Na et al, 2022a ; Umucu et al, 2022 ), while it ranged from 22.7% to 35.3% in Canada( Mahar et al, 2022 ; Richardson et al, 2022 ). Moreover, almost a quarter of the veterans reported loneliness in Canada( Mahar et al, 2022 ), which was larger than in the USA (15.9%)( Na et al, 2022b ). Similar to the psychological impact of COVID-19, the incidence of mental disorders among veterans varied from country to country during the global outbreak.…”