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The following is a summary of “Changes in the number and characteristics of tertiary hospital psychiatric admissions in south Croatia before and during the COVID-19 pandemic: a retrospective study,” published in the January 2025 issue of Psychiatry by Vukićević et al. 

Evidence on the impact of COVID-19 on psychiatric care for severe mental illnesses remains mixed, with regional differences. The specific effects on mental health in Croatia, a South-Eastern European country, are not well understood. 

Researchers conducted a retrospective study to evaluate psychiatric hospitalizations before and during the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic in a tertiary hospital in south Croatia. 

They conducted a retrospective study of adult psychiatric hospitalizations at the University Hospital of Split, Croatia. Data from the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic (March 1, 2020 – March 1, 2021) and the year before (March 1, 2019 – February 29, 2020) were compared using the incidence rate ratio (IRR) and statistical tests. 

The results showed a significant reduction in hospitalization rates during the COVID-19 pandemic (IRR = 0.72, 95% CI 0.67–0.78, P < 0.0001). Hospitalizations due to suicidality increased nearly 3 times, while autoaggression and heteroaggression increased nearly 4 times (P = 0.000). The proportion of patients diagnosed with schizophrenia, schizotypal, and delusional disorders was higher during the pandemic (61% vs 52%), while neurotic, stress-related, and somatoform disorders decreased (5.9% vs 10%, P = 0.001). Patients during the pandemic were younger (P = 0.004), more educated (P = 0.040), had a higher prevalence of personal psychiatric history (P = 0.024), and experienced longer hospital stays (P = 0.002). 

Investigators found a significant reduction in psychiatric hospitalizations during the COVID-19 pandemic, with increased cases of suicidality, aggression, and severe mental illnesses. These findings highlighted the need for healthcare systems to adapt to the changing demands of psychiatric care during public health crises. 

Source: bmcpsychiatry.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s12888-024-06436-1