Study: COVID-19 Survivors May Be at Greater Mental Health Risk
2020-11-14
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1Researchers say COVID-19 survivors may be at greater risk of developing mental health issues than other people.
2That information comes from a large study published earlier this week.
3The study found that 20 percent of those infected with the novel coronavirus are diagnosed with a psychiatric disorder within 90 days.
4Researchers from Britain's Oxford University studied recovered COVID-19 patients who developed mental health problems.
5They found that the most common issues were anxiety, depression, and insomnia -- the inability to sleep.
6They also noted a much higher risk of dementia, a condition that weakens the brain.
7Paul Harrison, a professor of psychiatry at Oxford, is one of the researchers.
8He told Reuters news agency, "People have been worried that COVID-19 survivors will be at greater risk of mental health problems, and our findings ... show this to be likely."
9Harrison urged doctors and scientists around the world to urgently investigate the causes of mental conditions after COVID-19.
10And he wants them to find new treatments for the disease.
11Health services need to be ready to provide care, Harrison warned.
12This is especially true, he said, because the estimates from the study are probably on the low side.
13The Oxford researchers looked at electronic health records of 69 million people in the United States.
14This number included more than 62,000 cases of COVID-19.
15The researchers said the findings are likely to be the same for those infected by COVID-19 worldwide.
16In the three months following a positive test result for COVID-19, one in five survivors said they experienced a first-time diagnosis of anxiety, depression or insomnia.
17The researchers said that COVID-19 survivors were twice as likely to be diagnosed with these conditions than other groups of patients in the same three-month period.
18The study also found that people with a pre-existing mental condition were 65 percent more likely to be diagnosed with COVID-19 than those without.
19A report on the study appeared in The Lancet Psychiatry journal.
20Mental health specialists not directly involved with the study said its findings add to growing evidence that COVID-19 affects the brain.
21They said that the disease also can increase the risk of many psychiatric disorders.
22"This is likely due to a combination of the psychological stressors associated with this particular pandemic and the physical effects of the illness," noted Michael Bloomfield.
23He is a psychiatrist with University College London.
24The fact that people with mental health disorders are at higher risk of getting COVID-19 confirms similar findings in other infectious disease outbreaks, said Simon Wessely.
25He is a professor of psychiatry at King's College London.
26"COVID-19 affects the central nervous system," Wessely said, "and so might directly increase" other disorders.
27But he added that the study confirms there is more going on.
28The risk, he said, is increased by pre-existing health conditions.
29Marjorie Wallace is chief of the mental health aid group SANE.
30She said the study looks like her organization's experience during the coronavirus health crisis.
31Wallace said that SANE's telephone helpline is dealing with an increasing number of first-time callers who are having mental health issues.
32Others are relapsing, she said, because their fear and anxiety have become unbearable.
33I'm Anna Matteo.
1Researchers say COVID-19 survivors may be at greater risk of developing mental health issues than other people. That information comes from a large study published earlier this week. 2The study found that 20 percent of those infected with the novel coronavirus are diagnosed with a psychiatric disorder within 90 days. 3Researchers from Britain's Oxford University studied recovered COVID-19 patients who developed mental health problems. They found that the most common issues were anxiety, depression, and insomnia -- the inability to sleep. They also noted a much higher risk of dementia, a condition that weakens the brain. 4Paul Harrison, a professor of psychiatry at Oxford, is one of the researchers. He told Reuters news agency, "People have been worried that COVID-19 survivors will be at greater risk of mental health problems, and our findings ... show this to be likely." 5Harrison urged doctors and scientists around the world to urgently investigate the causes of mental conditions after COVID-19. And he wants them to find new treatments for the disease. 6Health services need to be ready to provide care, Harrison warned. This is especially true, he said, because the estimates from the study are probably on the low side. 7The Oxford researchers looked at electronic health records of 69 million people in the United States. This number included more than 62,000 cases of COVID-19. The researchers said the findings are likely to be the same for those infected by COVID-19 worldwide. 8In the three months following a positive test result for COVID-19, one in five survivors said they experienced a first-time diagnosis of anxiety, depression or insomnia. The researchers said that COVID-19 survivors were twice as likely to be diagnosed with these conditions than other groups of patients in the same three-month period. 9The study also found that people with a pre-existing mental condition were 65 percent more likely to be diagnosed with COVID-19 than those without. 10A report on the study appeared in The Lancet Psychiatry journal. 11Mental health specialists not directly involved with the study said its findings add to growing evidence that COVID-19 affects the brain. They said that the disease also can increase the risk of many psychiatric disorders. 12"This is likely due to a combination of the psychological stressors associated with this particular pandemic and the physical effects of the illness," noted Michael Bloomfield. He is a psychiatrist with University College London. 13The fact that people with mental health disorders are at higher risk of getting COVID-19 confirms similar findings in other infectious disease outbreaks, said Simon Wessely. He is a professor of psychiatry at King's College London. 14"COVID-19 affects the central nervous system," Wessely said, "and so might directly increase" other disorders. But he added that the study confirms there is more going on. The risk, he said, is increased by pre-existing health conditions. 15Marjorie Wallace is chief of the mental health aid group SANE. She said the study looks like her organization's experience during the coronavirus health crisis. 16Wallace said that SANE's telephone helpline is dealing with an increasing number of first-time callers who are having mental health issues. Others are relapsing, she said, because their fear and anxiety have become unbearable. 17I'm Anna Matteo. 18Reporting by Kate Kelland reported this story for Reuters news agency. Anna Matteo adapted it for VOA Learning English. George Grow was the editor. 19________________________________________________________________ 20Words in This Story 21diagnose - v. to recognize a disease, illness, etc., in (someone) 22psychiatry - n. a branch of medicine that deals with mental, emotional, or behavioral disorders psychiatric - adj. 23anxiety - n. fear or nervousness about what might happen 24dementia - n. a usually progressive condition (as Alzheimer's disease) marked by the development of multiple cognitive deficits (as memory impairment, aphasia, and inability to plan and initiate complex behavior) 25positive - adj. good or useful 26journal - n. a periodical dealing especially with matters of current interest 27stressor - n. a stimulus that causes stress 28outbreak - n. a sudden rise in the incidence of a disease 29relapse - n. the return of an illness after a period of improvement