The following is a summary of “Evaluation of Neuropsychiatric outcomes in patients hospitalized with COVID-19 in a nationwide Veterans Health Administration cohort,” published in the April 2024 issue of Psychiatry by Patil et al.
Hospitalized patients with COVID-19 have an increased risk of developing psychiatric symptoms correlated with post-COVID-19 syndrome.
Researchers conducted a retrospective study assessing the impact of COVID-19 hospitalization on neuropsychiatric healthcare utilization, new-onset depression, and dementia.
They used nationwide Veterans Health Administration data from Jan 1, 2020, to Jan 1, 2022. The COVID-19 group comprised patients with positive tests within seven days of hospitalization. The control group was made of patients hospitalized for reasons other than COVID-19 and without a positive test prior or during the study. Also 1:1 matching was conducted using propensity scores.
The results showed that the COVID-19 group (n=50,805 with a mean age of 69 years and 93% males) had significantly higher rates of psychiatry-related hospitalizations at 90 and 180 days. Also, there were increased outpatient mental health visits at 180 days compared to the control group.
Investigators concluded that hospitalization during COVID-19 is linked with increased neuropsychiatric healthcare utilization along with depression and dementia.
Source: sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0165178124001987
