Mental Health of COVID-19 Survivors at 6 and 12 Months Postdiagnosis: A Cohort Study

Xin Huang; Lin Liu; Buzohre Eli; Jingyi Wang; Yaru Chen; Zhengkui Liu

doi:10.3389/fpsyt.2022.863698

Mental Health of COVID-19 Survivors at 6 and 12 Months Postdiagnosis: A Cohort Study

Front Psychiatry. 2022 Apr 8:13:863698. doi: 10.3389/fpsyt.2022.863698. eCollection 2022.

Authors

Xin Huang^{1

2}, Lin Liu³, Buzohre Eli^{1

2}, Jingyi Wang^{1

2}, Yaru Chen^{1

2}, Zhengkui Liu^{1

2}

Affiliations

¹ Chinese Academy of Science (CAS) Key Laboratory of Mental Health, Institute of Psychology, Beijing, China.
² Department of Psychology, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China.
³ Jinyintan Hospital, Wuhan, China.

Abstract

Objective: As COVID-19 persists around the world, it is necessary to explore the long-term mental health effects in COVID-19 survivors. In this study, we investigated the mental health outcomes of survivors of COVID-19 at 6 and 12 months postdiagnosis.

Methods: Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD checklist for the DSM-5, PCL-5), depression (PHQ-9), anxiety (Generalized Anxiety Disorder Scale, GAD-7), resilience (Connor-Davidson Resilience Scale, CD-RISC-10), perceived social support (PSSS), personality traits (Chinese Big Five Personality Inventory-15, CBF-PI-15), and sociodemographic information were examined among 511 survivors of COVID-19 (48.1%, females; M _age = 56.23 years at first assessment) at 6 and 12 months postdiagnosis. The data were analyzed with Wilcoxon signed rank tests and multivariable logistic regression models.

Results: The prevalence of anxiety, depression, and posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) at 6 and 12 months after diagnosis was 13.31% and 6.26%; 20.35% and 11.94%; and 13.11% and 6.07%, respectively. The risk factors for all symptoms were as follows: higher neuroticism; lower openness, extraversion, agreeableness, and resilience; greater life disruptions due to COVID-19; poorer living standards; and increased symptoms of PTSD or depression at 6 months postdiagnosis.

Conclusion: The mental health of COVID-19 survivors improved between 6 and 12 months postdiagnosis. Mental health workers should pay long-term attention to this group, especially to survivors with risk factors.

Keywords: COVID-19; PTSD; anxiety; depression; hospitalized survivors.