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Post-discharge depressive symptoms and health-related quality of life of critical COVID-19 survivors

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  13 August 2021

S. Martins
Affiliation:
Department Of Clinical Neuroscience And Mental Health And Center for health technology and services research (cintesis), Faculty of Medicine - University Porto, Porto, Portugal
A.R. Ferreira
Affiliation:
Intensive Care Medicine Department, Centro Hospitalar Universitário São João (CHUSJ), Porto, Portugal
J. Fernandes
Affiliation:
Intensive Care Medicine Department, Centro Hospitalar Universitário São João (CHUSJ), Porto, Portugal
T. Vieira
Affiliation:
Intensive Care Medicine Department, Centro Hospitalar Universitário São João (CHUSJ), Porto, Portugal
L. Fontes
Affiliation:
Intensive Care Medicine Department, Centro Hospitalar Universitário São João (CHUSJ), Porto, Portugal
I. Coimbra
Affiliation:
Intensive Care Medicine Department, Centro Hospitalar Universitário São João (CHUSJ), Porto, Portugal
J. Paiva
Affiliation:
Intensive Care Medicine Department, Centro Hospitalar Universitário São João (CHUSJ), Porto, Portugal Department Of Medicine, Faculty of Medicine - University Porto, Porto, Portugal
L. Fernandes
Affiliation:
Psychiatry Service, Centro Hospitalar Universitário São João (CHUSJ), Porto, Portugal

Abstract

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Introduction

Survivors of critical illness stay frequently experience long-term mental health morbidity, suggesting that many critically ill patients with COVID-19 may also show a high prevalence of psychiatric conditions.

Objectives

To describe depression in COVID-19 survivors 4-months post-hospital discharge and to examine its association with health-related quality of life (HRQoL).

Methods

This pilot study involved COVID-19 adult patients admitted in Intensive Care Medicine Service (ICMS) of a University Hospital. Exclusion criteria were: ICMS length of stay (LoS)≤24h, terminal illness, major sensory loss and inability to communicate at the time of assessment. All participants were evaluated at ICMS scheduled telephone follow-up appointment, with Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-9) (depression) and EQ-5D-5L (HRQoL). Critical-illness severity was assessed with APACHE-II and SAPS-II.

Results

Twenty patients were included with a median age of 62(range: 24-77) y.o., the majority male (75%) and married (70%). Median (range) APACHE-II and SAPS-II was 17 (5-34) and 32.5 (7-77), respectively, and LoS was 18 (4-58) days. Overall, 25% patients presented depression symptoms and most reported problems on EQ-5D-5L domains of pain/discomfort (65%), anxiety/depression (55%) and mobility (50%). Depression scores were higher in patients with problems in EQ-5D-5L domains of usual activities (median 4 vs 1.5; p=0.046), pain/discomfort (median 0 vs 4; p=0.004) and anxiety/depression (median 4 vs 0;p<0.001).

Conclusions

These preliminary findings show that depression is frequent in COVID-19 survivors and it is associated with worse HRQoL. This pilot study highlights the importance of psychological assessment and treatment of COVID-19 survivors, in order to minimize its negative impact on HRQoL, optimizing their recovery.

Type
Abstract
Creative Commons
Creative Common License - CCCreative Common License - BY
This is an Open Access article, distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution licence (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted re-use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
Copyright
© The Author(s), 2021. Published by Cambridge University Press on behalf of the European Psychiatric Association
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