Quel est l’impact du confinement chez les personnes souffrant de troubles psychiatriques lors de la pandémie de COVID-19 ?

The unprecedented deployment of lockdown measures during the COVID-19 pandemic has provided an emerging literature detailing its consequences on people with mental disorders. These studies suggest, among other things, an increased symptom burden that can lead to exacerbation of depression, anxiety, sleep disorders and suicidal risk. While people with anxiety disorders are particularly affected during the first weeks of lockdown, people with bipolar disorder experience less intense but longer lasting symptomatology. On the other hand, people with psychotic disorders seem to be spared from the impact of lockdown. Nevertheless, data concerning this population are still limited. Moreover, the measures of lockdown are likely to color the clinical presentation of some mental disorders. A knowledge of these specificities could orient the clinician's perspective and be useful for the adaptation of preventive, diagnostic and therapeutic strategies. Among the measures proposed, the most relevant are those based on the promotion of mental health, the maintenance of follow-up, and more broadly, on the prevention of isolation and solitude. People with mental illnesses may suffer from the long-term persistence of some of the effects of lockdown. Further studies are needed to characterize these effects.