Covid Strikes Again! Experts Warn About “New Psychiatric Disorders Risk”

Covid Strikes Again! Experts Warn About “New Psychiatric Disorders Risk”
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One in every seventeen Covid-19 patients may gen diagnosed with anxiety, depression or insomnia for the first time in their lives, according to a study on millions of US patient health records.

The number is shocking, as it is approximately double the risk from other illnesses, the same study says.

Surprisingly, they also discovered that existing psychiatric patients have a 65% greater chance of getting diagnosed with the novel Coronavirus.

That may be partly due to the usage of drugs prescribed to treat disorders or the individual’s physical health state.

The team of Oxford researchers says that the patients should receive appropriate care.

However, they stopped short of asking psychiatric patients to see themselves as very vulnerable individuals.

Paul Harrison, the lead author of the recent study, claimed that people diagnosed with Covid-19 “will be at greater risk of mental health problems.”

Curiously, even those not admitted to hospitals with Covid presented higher risks.

The results of the study were posted in the Lancet Psychiatry, and they were likely to be “underestimates” of the actual number of cases. However, the experiences of people vary in other countries.

The Stressors

The researchers analyzed 62,000 people infected with Covid for three months after being diagnosed and compared their state with thousands of people with other conditions like flu, kidney stones or even broken bones.

The percentage of patients diagnosed with psychiatric illnesses were:

  • 18% of those with Covid
  • 13% of those with flu
  • 7% of those with a fracture

Curiously, the scientists removed the cases of patients who were diagnosed with a disorder in the past, and the result was:

  • 8% of those with Covid
  • 8% of those with flu
  • 5% of those with a fracture

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Anna is an avid blogger with an educational background in medicine and mental health. She is a generalist with many other interests including nutrition, women's health, astronomy and photography. In her free time from work and writing, Anna enjoys nature walks, reading, and listening to jazz and classical music.

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