Anxiety, Insomnia and Body Mass Index Scores in Italian Nurses Engaged in the Care of COVID-19 Patients

Abstract

Background: A new Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus (SARS-CoV-2) (COVID-19) infection was reported in Wuhan, China, and quickly spread, becoming a global health emergency. Literature shows how nursing work is particularly stressful and how this condition is closely connected to the development of anxiety disorders, sleep quality and can also influence eating behavior with consequent variations in BMI values. Objective: The study aims to investigate and correlate the levels of anxiety, insomnia and Body Mass Index among nurses directly involved in the care of patients in the intensive care units with the Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus (SARS-CoV-2) infection. Method: An observatory study was conducted assessing and correlating the anxiety and insomnia levels and BMI values of each nurse before (until December 2019) and during (until May 2020) the pandemic. Results: In total, 291 Italian nurses joined the study. There are no statistically significant differences between female nurses and male nurses for both groups of participants with or without anxiety (p=0.655). Female nurses with mild, moderate and severe insomnia levels were statistically more numerous than male nurses (p=0.025). For the same BMI differences, the levels of anxiety and insomnia were statistically significant between them (p<0.001). Conclusion: Nurses engaged in the treatment of the most serious patients with Covid-19 are subjected to very high levels of stress due to the nature of the nursing job, shifting, poor rest, anxiety due to health emergency period and weight gain.

Posttraumatic Stress Disorder among Registered Nurses and Nursing Students in Italy during the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Cross-Sectional Study

“…Nurses might develop coping strategies to complete their heavy workloads and important professional changes, such as improving technical competencies in a very short time. Additionally, lack of PPE availability, perceptions of unsafe work environments, being isolated from family members to avoid contagion, and fear of the unknown new SARS-CoV-2 infection negatively influenced nurses' mental conditions during the pandemic [19][20][21][22][23][24]43]. In line with previous studies [44][45][46], a considerable portion of the healthcare workers participating in this survey were provisionally diagnosed with PTSD.…”

“…In this regard, of several studies in the literature showing PTSD among nurses [39] during the COVID-19 pandemic [19][20][21][22][23][24], few investigated PTSD in nursing students and very few compared nurses and nursing students during the COVID-19 pandemic. The present pilot study aimed to investigate PTSD symptoms in nurses according to sex and nursing experience.…”

“…The COVID-19 pandemic changed healthcare systems throughout the world [17,18]. In this scenario, the literature suggested extreme exhaustion, physical discomfort from long working hours with the enforced wearing of face masks and other personal protective equipment (PPE), fear of contagion, and emotional distress in nurses [19][20][21][22][23]. Therefore, the highest level in nursing professional stress and exhaustion led also to other behavioral and psychiatric disorders, including insomnia, anxiety, vague malaise, asthenia, headache, diffuse pains, dyspepsia, and eating disorders [19][20][21][22][23][24].…”

“…In this scenario, the literature suggested extreme exhaustion, physical discomfort from long working hours with the enforced wearing of face masks and other personal protective equipment (PPE), fear of contagion, and emotional distress in nurses [19][20][21][22][23]. Therefore, the highest level in nursing professional stress and exhaustion led also to other behavioral and psychiatric disorders, including insomnia, anxiety, vague malaise, asthenia, headache, diffuse pains, dyspepsia, and eating disorders [19][20][21][22][23][24]. From China [25,26] and Italy [19][20][21][22][23][24], where the pandemic was widespread during the first wave of the pandemic, it was reported that nurses at the forefront of caring for COVID-19 patients were at an increased risk of mental health disorders than other healthcare workers.…”

“…Therefore, the highest level in nursing professional stress and exhaustion led also to other behavioral and psychiatric disorders, including insomnia, anxiety, vague malaise, asthenia, headache, diffuse pains, dyspepsia, and eating disorders [19][20][21][22][23][24]. From China [25,26] and Italy [19][20][21][22][23][24], where the pandemic was widespread during the first wave of the pandemic, it was reported that nurses at the forefront of caring for COVID-19 patients were at an increased risk of mental health disorders than other healthcare workers. These early papers concerning the pandemic's impact on healthcare workers pinpointed frontline exposure to COVID-19 patients as a main risk factor but identified few other variables explaining the reported symptoms of depression, anxiety, insomnia, psychological distress, and posttraumatic stress among nurses [27,28].…”