Psychiatric and Neuropsychiatric issues in persons with COVID-19 infection: A case-control online study from India – NEOREALIST STUDY

BACKGROUND: Few studies across the globe have evaluated the adverse mental health consequences of COVID-19, in patients who suffered from COVID-19 infection. However, a comparative study of persons who suffered from COVID-19 and those who witnessed the COVID-19 infection in their 1 st degree relative/s is lacking. AIMS & OBJECTIVES: This study aims to compare the psychiatric morbidity in persons who suffered from COVID-19 infections, and those who witnessed the illness in one of their first degree relative/s. METHODS: In this cross-sectional online survey, 2964 adult participants completed the Patient Health Questionnaire-9 (PHQ-9), Generalized Anxiety Disorder-7 (GAD-7), Fear of COVID-19 Scale (FCS-19), Brief Resilient Coping Scale (BRCS), The Brief Resilience Scale (BRS) and a self-designed questionnaire to evaluate Neuropsychiatric issues. RESULTS-: Mean PHQ-9, GAD-7 and FCS-19 were significantly higher in those who themselves suffered from COVID-19 as compared to those who witnessed the infection in their 1 st degree relative (7.41 ± 7.09 vs 6.56 ± 6.15; p<0.0001; 5.58 ± 6.59 vs 5.10 ± 5.97;p=0.001;11.32±6.45 vs 10.48±6.12; p=0.001 respectively). However, BRS coping score was not significantly different between both the groups. Overall, about 1/3 rd of the participants who developed COVID-19 infection had depression and one-third had anxiety disorders. One-fifth of the participants reported high fear, PTSD and OCD symptoms, while 1/6 th reported other neuropsychiatric manifestations. CONCLUSION: Patients who suffered from COVID-19 had higher prevalence of PHQ-9, GAD-7 and FCS-19 as compared to those to witnessed COVID-19 in relatives but with similar BRCS.