A prospective study of the effect of COVID-19 on psychiatric symptoms and sleep problems from infection to 9-month follow-up

Diverse psychological consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic have been reported for 6 months after infection. We conducted a prospective study to evaluate the psychological impact of COVID-19 infection in newly diagnosed cases that were followed up at 1, 6, and 9 months after infection. 137 people were recruited and divided into four groups based on the COVID-19 Treatment Guidelines. They were evaluated using the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI), Post-traumatic stress disorder Checklist for DSM-5 (PCL-5), and Symptom Checklist 90 (SCL-90). We found that 9 months after infection, patients continued to report poor sleep (74.5%), PTSD (78.3%), somatization (17%), anxiety (17%), aggression (5.7%), phobic anxiety (4.7%), psychoticism (1.9%), paranoid (3.8%), and obsessive-compulsive (9.4%) symptoms, as well as depression and interpersonal sensitivity. The most significant risk factors for psychiatric complications were older age, level of education, smoking, hospitalization duration, hypertension, and critical severity. The negative mental health effects of COVID-19 persist after hospital discharge, and many patients continue to experience moderate-to-severe issues that may endure for 9 months. Notably, there was a progressive improvement in these symptoms over that time.