A Cross-Sectional Study on the Psychological Impact of Stress, Anxiety and Depressive Symptoms in COVID-19 Patients

Background COVID-19 has become a public health emergency caused by a negative-stranded ribonucleic acid (RNA) virus, which previously caused severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) and the Middle East respiratory syndrome (MERS). In addition, the pandemic led to an array of social, financial, psychological, and psychiatric issues. Methods An observational study was performed with consecutive sampling and included patients diagnosed with COVID-19 and admitted to the hospital. Subjects were evaluated using a semi-structured proforma and an online survey of the revised Impact of Event Scale (IES-R) 15 days post-discharge from the hospital. Results A total of 201 subjects were recruited, of which approximately 30% were female, and the rest were male. Approximately half of the subjects experienced symptoms suggestive of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), with the highest number of patients falling in the severe category. Also, females experienced more anxiety symptoms than males (p=0.002). Conclusion Infection with COVID-19 and hospitalization tended to significantly impact individuals' mental state. In addition, the majority of subjects had severe symptoms of post-COVID PTSD, warranting the need for treatment.