Fear of Death during COVID-19 Does Not Explain Post-Infection Depression Symptoms beyond Reported Symptoms during the Infection in COVID-19 Survivors

The COVID-19 pandemic poses an unprecedented global burden to the general population and, in particular, to individuals who have been infected with SARS-CoV-2. In the context of the discussion about "post COVID-19", the aim of the study was to advance research on mental health and long-ter...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:International journal of environmental research and public health 2022-10, Vol.19 (21), p.13773
Main Authors: Speichert, Leoni-Johanna, Schweda, Adam, Witzke, Oliver, Konik, Margarethe, Rohn, Hana, Stettner, Mark, Musche, Venja, Herchert, Klaas, Fink, Madeleine, Geiger, Sheila, Bäuerle, Alexander, Skoda, Eva-Maria, Teufel, Martin, Dinse, Hannah
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Anxiety - psychology
Coronaviruses
COVID-19
COVID-19 - epidemiology
COVID-19 Testing
Cross-Sectional Studies
Death
Depression - epidemiology
Depression - etiology
Depression - psychology
Fear
Female
Humans
Infections
Medically Unexplained Symptoms
Mental depression
Mental health
Mortality
Pandemics
SARS-CoV-2
Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2
Sociodemographics
Survivors
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Summary:The COVID-19 pandemic poses an unprecedented global burden to the general population and, in particular, to individuals who have been infected with SARS-CoV-2. In the context of the discussion about "post COVID-19", the aim of the study was to advance research on mental health and long-term consequences after COVID-19. In total, 214 COVID-19 survivors (female: 54.2%; hospitalized: 36.7%) participated in the repeated cross-sectional assessment. In addition to demographic data, mental and somatic symptoms, fear of death at the time of infection, and depressive (PHQ-8) and generalized anxiety symptoms (GAD-7) were assessed. Results showed an increased prevalence of depressive symptoms and symptoms of generalized anxiety compared to observations in the general population prior to the COVID-19 pandemic. Psychological symptoms of depression and reported levels of fear of death during the SARS-CoV-2 infection showed a negative association with the time interval since COVID-19 diagnosis. Furthermore, although fear of death during the acute COVID-19 was related to depression and generalized anxiety, this association was predominantly explained by the presence of mental and somatic symptoms. In conclusion, initial fear of death does not impact mental health beyond the overall symptom burden. Furthermore, depressive symptoms appear to vanish across time since infection.
ISSN:1660-4601
1661-7827
1660-4601
DOI:10.3390/ijerph192113773