Psychological state of a sample of patients with mood disorders during the first French COVID-19 lockdown

Abstract

Since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, evidence shows the negative psychological impact of lockdown measures in the general population. It is also important to identify predictors of psychological distress in vulnerable people, particularly patients with history of depressive episodes (the most prevalent psychiatric disorder), in order to adapt mental health strategies for future lockdown measures. This study aim was to (1) compare in 69 healthy controls (HC) and 346 patients with a major depressive episode in the two previous years (PP) self-reported psychological symptoms (depression, anxiety, insomnia, suicidal ideation, traumatic stress, anger) and living conditions during the first national French lockdown, and (2) identify predictors of significant psychological distress in PP. The levels of psychological symptoms were very low in HC compared with PP, independently of the living conditions. Half of PP had no psychiatric contact during the lockdown. Loneliness and boredom were independent predictors of depression, anxiety and insomnia, whereas daily physical activity was a protective factor. Virtual contacts protected against suicidal ideation. Our results highlight the need of specific strategies to target loneliness and boredom and to improve care access, including telepsychiatry. Longitudinal studies must investigate the COVID-19 pandemic psychological impact in clinical samples.

Patients with affective disorders profit most from telemedical treatment: Evidence from a naturalistic patient cohort during the COVID-19 pandemic

“…However, we do not know the precise pre-pandemic level of psychopathology at baseline. Since a majority of patients that enrolled in our study had received psychiatric treatment at some time, however not immediately before the beginning of the study, they might have been at a greater risk for developing clinically relevant psychopathology during the COVID-19 pandemic, a finding that is also supported by results from a French cohort focusing on individuals with a history of depressive episodes(34).…”

Suicidal ideation and suicide attempts in psychiatric patients during the COVID-19: A systematic review and meta-analysis

“…(2) Healthy controls ( n = 237). For patients with OCD, 7(5.5%)described active suicidal ideation and 30(23% )reported passive suicidal ideation.percentages significantly higher than those in the general population Olié et al., al. (2021) French Longitudinal study (1) patients with a major depressive ( n = 346).…”

“…The rest of the studies were conducted during the COVID-19 pandemic. Two studies investigated the prevalence of suicidal ideation in patients having obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) ( Alonso et al., 2021 )and those with major depression ( Olié et al., 2021 ), respectively, compared with healthy people from the same area. For patients with OCD, 5.5% described active suicidal ideation, and 23% reported passive suicidal ideation, significantly higher than the general population.…”

Trends in psychotropic drug consumption among French military personnel during the COVID-19 epidemic

“…The subsequent temporary decrease in the rates of psychotropic drug reimbursement during the same initial lockdown may correspond to the use of the drugs that had been purchased earlier and the limited access to general practitioners or specialists during that time. Although unlikely considering the increase in insomnia, depressive symptoms, and anxiety during this period in the general population [ 24 ], we cannot fully exclude that the decrease in drug dispensing may have been the result of a brief decrease in consumption.…”