Prevalence of anxiety, depressive and insomnia symptoms among the different groups of people during COVID-19 pandemic: An overview of systematic reviews and meta-analyses

Abstract

Since the pandemic of the novel 2019 coronavirus disease (COVID-19), in addition to the harm caused by the disease itself, the psychological damage caused to the public by the pandemic is also a serious problem. The aim of our study was to summarize the systematic reviews/meta-analyses (SRs/MAs) of the prevalence of anxiety, depression and insomnia in different populations during the COVID-19 pandemic and to qualitatively evaluate these SRs/MAs. We searched the Cochrane Library, PubMed and Web of Science to obtain SRs/MAs related to anxiety, depression, and insomnia in different populations during the COVID-19 pandemic. The main populations we studied were healthcare workers (HCWs), college students (CSs), COVID-19 patients (CPs), and the general populations (GPs). A subgroup analysis was performed of the prevalence of psychological disorders. A total of 42 SRs/MAs (8,200,330 participants) were included in calculating and assessing the prevalence of anxiety, depression, and insomnia in these populations. The results of subgroup analysis showed that the prevalence of anxiety in different populations were: HCWs (20–44%), CSs (24–41%), CPs (15–47%), and GPs (22–38%). The prevalence of depression were: HCWs (22–38%), CSs (22–52%), CPs (38–45%), and GPs (16–35%), statistically significant differences between subgroups (p < 0.05). The prevalence of insomnia were: HCWs (28–45%), CSs (27–33%), CPs (34–48%), and GPs (28–35%), statistically significant differences between subgroups (p < 0.05). The comparison revealed a higher prevalence of psychological disorders in the CP group, with insomnia being the most pronounced. The methodological quality of the included SRs/MAs was then evaluated using AMSTAR 2 tool. The results of the methodological quality evaluation showed that 13 SRs/MAs were rated “medium,” 13 were rated “low,” and 16 were rated “very low.” Through the subgroup analysis and evaluation of methodological quality, we found a higher prevalence of insomnia than anxiety and depression among the psychological disorders occurring in different populations during the pandemic, but the sample size on insomnia is small and more high-quality studies are needed to complement our findings.

Sleep disorders and associated factors among medical students in the Middle East and North Africa: a systematic review and meta-analysis

“…Globally, a wide range of insomnia prevalence measures have been reported in university students 9 , 19 , 36 – 38 , 84 and the adult general population 5 , 37 , 38 , 81 , 85 – 89 preventing comparisons. The differences in the diagnostic criteria used to assess insomnia could explain some of the observed differences in the insomnia prevalence between studies.…”

“…Several recently published systematic reviews (SRs) are focused on sleep disturbances rather than SDs among medical students 16 , 20 , 22 – 24 , 27 – 31 and university students 19 , 23 , 32 – 36 Also, the available SRs with data on insomnia were conducted among non-medical university students 9 , 36 – 38 with a focus on one specific country 37 , and the COVID-19 pandemic period 36 – 38 . Several primary studies on SDs in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) medical students have been recently published.…”

Association between lifestyle behaviors and health-related quality of life among primary health care physicians in China: A cross-sectional study

“…Working as a primary health care physician involves a heavy workload, and consequently they have little leisure time to spend with their family and friends. Furthermore, healthcare workers are always at the frontline of public health responses to major critical incidents and emergencies like COVID-19 ( 100 , 101 ), causing increases in mental ill health among them. In this regard, it is high time that public health care policy makers should establish ways to mitigate mental health risks and tailor interventions, such as modifications to work processes, shortening of shifts ( 98 ) and mental health training, which effectively make an enhancement in some mental health outcomes among primary health care physicians.…”

Disaster preparedness in healthcare professionals amid COVID-19 and beyond: A systematic review of randomized controlled trials

“…Depression has become widespread among university students and is understood as a critical barrier to academic performance at the university ( Jiang et al, 2022 , Wagner et al, 2022 ). Systematic reviews show that the occurrence of depressive symptoms is higher among university students than among non-college students or the general population ( Akhtar et al, 2020 , Luo et al, 2021 , Zou et al, 2022 ). Just as depression is high among university or college students, the prevalence of depression in nursing students is also widespread ( Njim et al, 2020 ).…”