A Year of Pandemic—Comparison of Depression Among Neurosurgeons After the Advent of the COVID-19 Vaccine

OBJECTIVE: To determine factors associated with anxiety and depression among neurosurgeons after vaccination during the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. METHODS: An online survey was completed by neurosurgeons worldwide over 4 weeks. Depression in neurosurgeons was assessed by the 20-item self-reporting questionnaire. RESULTS: A total of 534 responses were received and analyzed. Almost half of the respondents were from Asia (50.9%), followed by Europe (38.8%). The majority of the respondents were <40 years old (88%), and almost two thirds were trainees (62.2%). Half of the respondents worked in departments with <40 beds (50.7%), and the majority were practicing in the private sector (72.5%). Most of the respondents (85.8%) had COVID-19–positive colleagues in their department, and 64% had exposure to a COVID-19–positive colleague, family member, and/or patient. More than half of the respondents were exposed to infected patients and/or colleagues, and almost half (43.1%) underwent COVID-19 testing when exposed. Nearly half of the respondents underwent COVID-19 testing more than twice (52.4%). Of respondents, 83% had received at least the first dose of the vaccine. The odds of depression among vaccinated respondents were found to be significantly less than among unvaccinated respondents in the univariable model. CONCLUSIONS: Among health care workers, neurosurgeons are one of the groups indirectly affected by the pandemic. Adaptation to the new normal and advent of vaccines is speculated to control psychological distress among all groups of health care workers, including neurosurgeons. We found that odds of depression among vaccinated people were lower than among people who were not vaccinated.