The psychological impact of the COVID-19 pandemic and associated risk factors during the initial stage among the general population in India

Abstract

Background: In the absence of treatment and unclear prognosis, severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) itself, and public health measures like lockdown enforced by the government to limit the spread of the virus poses a threat to the psychological health of the general population. Aim: To assess the psychological status of the Indian population during the initial phase of lockdown. Method: It was a cross-sectional online survey where the questionnaire was disbursed by snowballing. The link to the survey was shared in different social networking platforms between 6th and 22nd of April 2020. The questionnaire collected responses related to the sociodemographic variables, exposure history, precautionary measures used, and the Depression, Anxiety, and Stress Scale (DASS-21) score. Results: A total of 541 participants responded to the questionnaire. Only 422 respondents' responses from 23 states of India who completed the questionnaire were included for assessment. The mean age of the participants was 30.5 (SD=10.9) years. Female constituted 60.4% (n=255) of the respondents. The pre-existing medical illness that the respondents had were diabetes mellitus, four per cent (n=17), hypertension, five per cent (n=21), thyroid dysfunction, nine per cent (n=38), and mental illness, five per cent (n=21). The median (IQR) of the DASS-21 item scale was found to be 16 (4-32). The percentage of the respondents who reported stress was 35.5% (n=149), anxiety, 32% (n=135), and depression, 34.7% (n=146). Respondents with sociodemographic variables like being single, student status, competed education till graduation, homemakers, working in public sector, and history of mental illness were more likely to experience stress, anxiety, and depression. A majority of the respondents were practicing hand hygiene and social distancing. Respondents who were unaware of their exposure status were more likely to have depression. Conclusion: The Indian population is experiencing the psychological impact of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), which may increase with the spread of the infection. India needs to gear up to face mental health consequences. People with a pre-existing physical and psychological illness needs extra care and precaution to prevent any relapse or development of complications.

COVID-19 lockdown and lifestyles: A narrative review

“…A high prevalence of stress and post-traumatic stress disorders was documented among Nepalese 150 , Lebanese 151 , Saudi Arabian 152 , Vietnamese 153 , and Philippine nationals 154 at the height of lockdown. High levels of anxiety and depression were also documented in studies from India [155][156][157] , Ecuador 158 , Albania 159 , Ireland 160 , Hungary 88,161 , Spain 162 , Palestine 163 , the UK 164 , Kuwait 165 , Brazil, and Portugal 166 . The prevalence of people reporting clinical depression and anxiety in a sample of 1215 respondents in Italy was recorded to be 32.3% and 35.7%, respectively (compared to 15.39% and 21.40%, respectively, during pre-COVID-19 times) 142 .…”

Psychological Effects of Home Confinement and Social Distancing Derived from COVID-19 in the General Population—A Systematic Review

“…Anxiety symptoms were evaluated in 24 of the 26 studies [ 25 , 26 , 28 , 29 , 30 , 31 , 32 , 33 , 34 , 35 , 36 , 37 , 38 , 39 , 40 , 41 , 43 , 44 , 45 , 46 , 47 , 48 , 49 , 50 ]. Prevalence differed from 8.3% to 45.1% [ 25 , 26 , 28 , 32 , 33 , 34 , 36 , 37 , 38 , 39 , 40 , 41 , 42 , 44 , 47 , 49 ] with the exception of the research conducted by Goularte et al [ 32 ], where 81.1% of the sample reported high levels of anxiety. This variability may be due to the lack of unanimity between the different studies regarding the definition of anxiety or the established cut-off point.…”

“…Younger ages were also associated with anxiety [ 25 , 28 , 29 , 30 , 34 , 35 , 36 , 37 , 43 , 44 , 45 , 46 , 47 , 49 ]. The student [ 26 , 33 , 35 ], unemployed [ 28 , 35 , 44 ], housewife [ 33 ] or health worker status [ 33 , 35 ] reported more anxiety compared to other occupational status (worker, retired people, etc.). Some studies also associated lower income [ 29 , 31 , 32 , 35 , 37 , 46 , 47 , 48 ], education [ 28 , 29 , 32 , 33 , 47 ] and the perception of the information received about the pandemic [ 31 , 37 ] with anxious symptomatology.…”

“…The student [ 26 , 33 , 35 ], unemployed [ 28 , 35 , 44 ], housewife [ 33 ] or health worker status [ 33 , 35 ] reported more anxiety compared to other occupational status (worker, retired people, etc.). Some studies also associated lower income [ 29 , 31 , 32 , 35 , 37 , 46 , 47 , 48 ], education [ 28 , 29 , 32 , 33 , 47 ] and the perception of the information received about the pandemic [ 31 , 37 ] with anxious symptomatology. Participants with a history of mental illness or current or prior psychiatric treatment reported being more anxious than healthy people [ 28 , 32 , 33 , 41 , 45 , 46 ].…”

Changes in the Health-related Quality of Life of Chinese Women in Japan Following the COVID-19 Outbreak

“…The most remarkable result to emerge from the data is the significant negative impact on the mental health-related domains. The impact of COVID-19 on mental health has also been addressed in many studies on various populations [6,12,13]. Although emergency prevention measures had the intended temporary effect on controlling the spread of the COVID-19 epidemic, people's socio-economic activities were exceedingly influenced, leading to increased stress and anxiety.…”