Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2022 Mar-Apr:75:75-82.
doi: 10.1016/j.genhosppsych.2022.02.004. Epub 2022 Feb 22.

Risk of severe COVID-19 infection in individuals with severe mental disorders, substance use disorders, and common mental disorders

A Sörberg Wallin  1 , A Ohlis  1 , C Dalman  1 , J Ahlen  2
Affiliations

Risk of severe COVID-19 infection in individuals with severe mental disorders, substance use disorders, and common mental disorders

A Sörberg Wallin et al. Gen Hosp Psychiatry. 2022 Mar-Apr.

Abstract

Objective: To evaluate the risk of severe COVID-19 in individuals with severe mental disorders, substance use disorders, and common mental disorders in the total adult population of Region Stockholm (N = 1,516,270), and to explore possible underlying mechanisms to the increased risk.

Methods: In this prospective cohort study, we examined the risk of hospitalization and treatment in an intensive care unit (ICU) with COVID-19, and death from COVID-19 for individuals with mental disorders. Associations were step by step adjusted for (1) sociodemographic/economic factors, (2) indicators of virus exposure, (3) somatic conditions, and (4) psychopharmacological treatment.

Results: In model 1 (adjusted for age, sex and living in a care home for elderly people), people with a mental disorder had increased risks for inpatient care (HR = 1.5), ICU care (HR = 1.5), and mortality (HR = 1.4) from COVID-19. There was an increased risk of dying from COVID-19 in all subgroups of mental disorders, particularly in people with a severe mental disorder (HR = 1.9). Different covariates had different effects on the association depending on the outcome and on sex, age, or psychiatric diagnosis of the participants.

Conclusion: People with mental disorders have an increased risk of severe COVID-19, including mortality. The increased risk was partly explained by the examined covariates.

Keywords: COVID-19; Common mental disorders; Severe mental disorders; Substance-related disorders.

PubMed Disclaimer

Figures

Fig. 1
Fig. 1
Flow-chart illustrating inclusion, exclusion and categorization into SMD, SUD, and CMD categories.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

Similar articles

See all similar articles

Cited by

See all "Cited by" articles

References

    1. Kozloff N., Mulsant B.H., Stergiopoulos V., Voineskos A.N. The COVID-19 global pandemic: implications for people with schizophrenia and related disorders. Schizophr Bull. 2020;46(4):752–757. doi: 10.1093/schbul/sbaa051. - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Cullen W., Gulati G., Kelly B.D. Mental health in the COVID-19 pandemic. QJM. 2020;113(5):311–312. doi: 10.1093/qjmed/hcaa110. - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Kivimäki M., Batty G.D., Pentti J., et al. Association between socioeconomic status and the development of mental and physical health conditions in adulthood: a multi-cohort study. Lancet Public Health. 2020;5(3):e140–e149. doi: 10.1016/S2468-2667(19)30248-8. - DOI - PubMed
    1. Bartelink V., Tynelius P., Walander A., et al. 2020. Socioekonomiska Faktorer Och Covid-19 i Stockholms Län.
    1. Sporinova B., Manns B., Tonelli M., et al. Association of mental health disorders with health care utilization and costs among adults with chronic disease. JAMA Netw Open. 2019;2(8) doi: 10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2019.9910. e199910-e199910. - DOI - PMC - PubMed

Publication types