Psychotic experiences in student population during the COVID-19 pandemic

Background COVID-19 was declared a pandemic in March 2020, by the World Health Organization. The pandemic has had unprecedented worldwide implications, in particular on marginalized populations. Aims The aim of this study is to review the impact of the pandemic on patients with schizophrenia spectrum disorders. Method A number of databases were searched for this review, including PubMed, EMBASE, PsycINFO and Google Scholar. Search terms included psychosis and COVID-19, schizophrenia and COVID-19, and severe mental illness and COVID-19. We included all English language papers and preprints. The final search was done on 15 July 2020. Results Forty-seven relevant studies were identified and included in this review. Studies were summarised into five main subcategories: potential impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on physical health outcomes of patients with schizophrenia spectrum disorders, impact on mental health outcomes, review of case reports and case series to date, treatment recommendation guidelines and risk of increased prevalence of psychosis. Conclusions Patients with schizophrenia spectrum disorders may be vulnerable to the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic. This patient population has a number of risk factors, including psychosocial adversities and illness related factors. Continuous monitoring and long-term studies of the impact of the pandemic on this patient population are required.

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“…Supplementary Table 1 available at provides a summary of characteristics of the included studies in this review. 2,4-50…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Hajdúk et al 29 assessed psychotic experiences among students from Comenius University in Bratislava, using surveys 1 year before and during the initial phase of the COVID-19 pandemic. There were no significant changes in the scores across the study time points.…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Implications of the COVID-19 pandemic for patients with schizophrenia spectrum disorders: narrative review

Zhand

Joober

2021

BJPsych open

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“…To our knowledge, no studies have been conducted thus far that compare symptoms or affective experiences before and after the onset of the pandemic in individuals with SMI. However, one such study in college students found no increase in psychotic experiences during the pandemic ( Hajdúk et al., 2020 ), and a study of older adults with pre-existing major depressive disorder counterintuitively found lower depression and anxiety during the pandemic ( Hamm et al., 2020 ). Thus, it is possible that individuals with SMI may actually be somewhat resilient to the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, but this remains untested.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

A Longitudinal Investigation of the Effects of the COVID-19 Pandemic on the Mental Health of Individuals with Pre-existing Severe Mental Illnesses

Pinkham

Ackerman

Depp

et al. 2020

Psychiatry Research

116

112

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Highlights Individuals with severe mental illnesses (SMI) may be at greater risk for negative mental health outcomes related to COVID-19. This study compared pre-pandemic ratings of symptoms to ratings made 2-4 months into the pandemic. Results showed no worsening of mood or psychotic experiences during the pandemic. Reports of well-being were higher during-pandemic as compared to pre-pandemic. Individuals with SMI are showing resilience in the early stages of the COVID-19 pandemic.

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“…This finding reinforces the notion that elevated trait negative affectivity and neuroticism seem to produce a driving effect on PSDs ( Horan and Blanchard, 2003 ) and stresses the need for enhancing clinicians’ awareness about the possibility that ‘minor’ mental disorders may unmask serious psychotic episodes in the medium-term period and afterwards. Despite the corrected model did not find differences in the emersion of psychotic symptoms across time, loneliness and perceived stress were related to psychotic symptoms both longitudinally and cross-sectionally in the sample ( Hajdúk et al., 2020 ).…”

mentioning

confidence: 83%

“…A recent survey was conducted in a non-clinical university student population based on two-wave panel data collected in the pre-COVID-19 era (October 2018) and during full health emergency (April 2020) ( Hajdúk et al., 2020 ). The authors importantly showed a mediating role of negative affectivity, especially depression, in the relationship between stressful life events and psychotic experiences at follow-up.…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

Psychosis spectrum disorders during and after the COVID-19 pandemic: Warning signs of “stress incubation”

Fierini

Moretti

Ballerini

2020

Psychiatry Research

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Psychotic experiences in student population during the COVID-19 pandemic

Cited by 29 publications

References 8 publications

Implications of the COVID-19 pandemic for patients with schizophrenia spectrum disorders: narrative review

Implications of the COVID-19 pandemic for patients with schizophrenia spectrum disorders: narrative review

A Longitudinal Investigation of the Effects of the COVID-19 Pandemic on the Mental Health of Individuals with Pre-existing Severe Mental Illnesses

Psychosis spectrum disorders during and after the COVID-19 pandemic: Warning signs of “stress incubation”

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