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. 2023 Jan;65(1):90-102.
doi: 10.4103/indianjpsychiatry.indianjpsychiatry_202_22. Epub 2023 Jan 13.

Prevalence of negative mental health status during COVID-19 pandemic among general population of seven Arab countries: A cross-sectional study of 28843 participants

Nada K Abdelsattar  1   2 , Aya Ghiath Alrawi  3   2 , Mohamed Ibrahim Abdelraoof  4   2 , Mohamed S Zaazouee  5   2 , Sarah Makram Elsayed  6   2 , Abdullah M Farhat  1   2 , Mahmoud Abd El-Shafea  1   2 , Ahmed K Abdeltawab  1   2 , Menna S Ali  1   2 , Alyaa K Madeeh  1   2 , Ahmed Assar  7   2 , Manar H Mohammed  1   2 , Eman A Abdullah  1   2 , Khaled M Ragab  8   2 , Mohamed Abd-ElGawad  1   2 , Mohamed Elsherif  9 , Inas Abd El Rahim  10 , Mahmoud A Ebada  11   12
Affiliations

Prevalence of negative mental health status during COVID-19 pandemic among general population of seven Arab countries: A cross-sectional study of 28843 participants

Nada K Abdelsattar et al. Indian J Psychiatry. 2023 Jan.

Abstract

Background: Previous studies documented a narrow scope of knowledge about the negative mental health status during the lockdown following the COVID-19 pandemic, especially in Arab countries.

Aim: We aimed to assess the association between negative mental health status and the COVID-19 pandemic and determine the different factors affecting mental health among the general population of seven Arab countries.

Methods: This study is a multinational cross-sectional questionnaire-based survey conducted online from June 11, 2020 to June 25, 2020. The depression, anxiety, and stress Scale 21 Items (DASS-21) and the Event scale-Revised Arabic version (IES-R-13) scales were used. Multiple linear regressions were performed to study the association between the scales' total scores with COVID-19 and demographic characteristics.

Results: A total of 28,843 participants from seven Arab countries were included. During the COVID-19 pandemic, the prevalence of mental health disorders has significantly increased. A total of 19006 participants (66%) were affected by variable degrees of depression, 13,688 (47%) had anxiety, and 14,374 (50%) had stress ranging from mild to severe. Higher levels were associated with other factors, such as lower age, female gender, chronic disease, unemployed, fear of getting infected, and a history of psychiatric disorders.

Conclusion: Our study findings show an increased incidence of mental disorders during the pandemic. This is expected to play a crucial role in guiding a psychological support strategy provided by healthcare systems to the general public during pandemics.

Keywords: Anxiety; Arab; COVID-19; depression; general population; stress.

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Conflict of interest statement

There are no conflicts of interest.

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