Highlights During the lockdown: Clinical depression was present in 9.31% Severe distress was present in 8.5% Increased anxious and depressive emotions were present in more than 40%. 23.31% experienced a relapse of depression 8.96% of cases without previous history, who manifested their first depressive episode. Beliefs in conspiracy theories were widely prevalent, with, on average, at least half of cases accepting various misconceptions. Beliefs in conspiracy theories probably constitute a maladaptive copying mechanism

Introduction: The aim of the study was to investigate mental health and conspiracy theory beliefs concerning COVID-19 among Health Care Professionals (HCPs). Material and Methods: During lockdown, an online questionnaire gathered data from 507 HCPs (432 females aged 33.86±8.63 and 75 males aged 39.09±9.54). Statistical Analysis: A post-stratification method to transform the study sample was used; descriptive statistics were calculated. Results: Anxiety and probable depression were increased 1.5-2-fold and were higher in females and nurses. Previous history of depression was the main risk factor. The rates of the believing in conspiracy theories concerning the COVID-19 were alarming with the majority of individuals (especially females) following some theory to at least some extend. Conclusions: The current paper reports high rates of depression, distress and suicidal thoughts in the HCPs during the lockdown, with a high prevalence of beliefs in conspiracy theories. Female gender and previous history of depression acted as risk factors while the belief in conspiracy theories might act as a protective factor. The results should be considered with caution due to the nature of the data (online survey on a self-selected but stratified sample)

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