With the full extent of Long Covid’s effects yet unknown, a new study published this week looking at the psychological consequences of coronavirus infection is asking a simple question: Is Coronavirus making us sad?

Mental health concerns have long been thought to be a typical symptom of Long Covid, but a recent study has discovered a definite link between depression and coronavirus infection.

The findings of the study were published in the British Medical Journal by the US Department of Veterans Affairs. It discovered that patients who test positive for Covid are 60 percent more likely to develop a mental health disorder.

Data was gathered from 153,848 people who had been infected with the virus, and their experiences were compared to those who had not.

The study also included data from a control group of people who were tracked for a year before the outbreak.

The study discovered that COVID patients were more likely to develop mental health problems such as sadness and anxiety, as well as sleep problems and substance misuse, over the course of a year.

They did not finish there. Not only were mental health problems more prevalent in persons who had contracted the virus, but so was the risk of requiring medication to maintain mental health following a year of infection.

The Covid positive portion had a 35 percent greater anxiety rate and a 39 percent higher rate of depression, according to the study.

In addition, other disorders were observed, though in limited numbers. There were 2.4 percent more participants in the Covid group who struggled with sleep and 0.4 percent who had drug addiction issues.

According to findings, the observations were more evident in persons who had been hospitalized with the virus, while they were still present in those who had not.

“Many people face an uphill battle to rebuild their lives,” said Dr Adrian James, head of the Royal College of Psychiatrists, adding, “treatment is vital but complicated by the reality that most people experiencing mental health difficulties after infection don’t seek help.”

Another study published this week found that those who had received all three vaccine doses against covid-19 were almost half as likely to have long-lasting covid symptoms as those who received only one vaccine dose or were unvaccinated.

Up until January 2022, the UK Health Security Agency conducted a quick review of evidence, which included 15 UK and international studies. Vaccination was defined as receiving two doses of the Pfizer-BioNTech, Oxford-AstraZeneca, or Moderna vaccines, or receiving one dose of the Janssen vaccine.

The effectiveness of the vaccine against most post-covid symptoms in adults was found to be best in persons over 60 and lowest in those aged 19 to 35, according to the study.

Fatigue, shortness of breath, and muscular or joint discomfort are the most typical symptoms of Long covid (or “post-covid syndrome”).

“These studies add to the potential benefits of receiving a full course of the covid-19 vaccination,” said Mary Ramsay, the agency’s chief of vaccination, adding, “Vaccination is the best way to protect yourself from serious symptoms when you get infected and may also help to reduce the longer term impact.”

“For most people, symptoms of long covid are short lived and resolve over time. But for some, symptoms can be more severe and disrupting to their daily lives.”

Image Credit: Getty

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