A new research project analyzing the health records of 18 million individuals shows a higher occurrence of mental health issues for up to one year after experiencing severe COVID-19, particularly in those who were unvaccinated. The study indicates that getting vaccinated may lessen the negative impact of COVID-19 on mental health. Conducted by the University of Bristol and published in JAMA Psychiatry on August 21, this study explored how COVID-19 relates to mental health conditions based on the timing of the diagnosis and vaccination status.
Previous studies have suggested a connection between COVID-19 and mental health conditions in both clinical and broader population settings. However, evidence regarding the relationship between COVID-19 and mental health outcomes in vaccinated individuals has been scarce.
A collaborative team of researchers from various institutions, including the University of Bristol Medical School, University College London (UCL), University of Oxford, University of Cambridge, and Swansea University Medical School, aimed to address this gap by analyzing the medical histories of 18,648,606 adults aged 18 to 110 who were registered with a GP in England.
In this group, the average age was 49 years, with 50.2% being women (9,363,710) and 1,012,335 adults having a confirmed diagnosis of COVID-19 (verified through testing records, GP consultations, hospital admissions, or death certificates).
Additionally, the researchers examined a vaccinated group that included 14,035,286 adults, among whom 866,469 had a confirmed COVID-19 diagnosis. This group had an average age of 53 years, with 52.1% being women (7,308,556). The unvaccinated group comprised 3,242,215 adults, of whom 149,745 had a confirmed diagnosis, with an average age of 35 years and 42.1% being women (1,363,401).
With these datasets, the researchers assessed the prevalence of mental health disorders before and after a COVID-19 diagnosis in each group. The study focused on various mental health issues such as depression, severe mental illness, general anxiety, PTSD, eating disorders, addiction, self-harm, and suicide.
The findings revealed a marked increase in most of these mental health conditions occurring one to four weeks following a COVID-19 diagnosis when compared to rates before or without COVID-19. This increase in mental health issues was particularly pronounced in individuals who experienced severe COVID-19 that required hospitalization and remained elevated for nearly a year in unvaccinated individuals.
The rise in mental health issues was predominantly linked to severe COVID-19 leading to hospitalization, with minimal increase noted in those with non-hospitalized COVID-19. For instance, the incidence of depression after non-hospitalized COVID-19 was up to 1.22 times greater than before or without COVID-19, whereas after hospitalization, it was as much as 16.3 times higher. Notably, in the vaccinated group, the incidence of depression after non-hospitalized COVID-19 resembled the rates before or without COVID-19.
This study contributes to the growing body of evidence indicating an increased risk of mental health issues following a COVID-19 diagnosis and the protective benefits of vaccination, with more severe COVID-19 correlating with stronger associations and long-term emergence of new mental health conditions.
Dr. Venexia Walker, a Senior Research Fellow in Epidemiology at the University of Bristol and one of the lead authors of the study, stated: “Our results carry significant implications for public health and mental health services, as serious mental illnesses tend to require more intensive healthcare and have longer-term impacts on health and well-being.”
Dr. Walker added, “These findings underscore the significance of COVID-19 vaccination for the general population, particularly for those with pre-existing mental health issues who may face a higher risk of both contracting SARS-CoV-2 and experiencing adverse outcomes post-COVID-19.”
Jonathan Sterne, a Professor of Medical Statistics and Epidemiology at the University of Bristol and a co-author of the study, noted: “We have already identified links between COVID-19 and cardiovascular issues, diabetes, and now mental health disorders. We will continue our research into the long-term consequences of COVID-19, including its associations with kidney, autoimmune, and neurodegenerative diseases.”
This research was supported by the COVID-19 Longitudinal Health and Wellbeing National Core Study, funded by the Medical Research Council (MRC) and the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR).
