New research shows that patients with severe psychiatric disorders (SMD) such as bipolar disorder or psychiatric disorder have a higher risk of somatic comorbidity and overall mortality than the rest of the population.
A team, led by Martin Maripuu, Department of Psychology, Department of Clinical Sciences, Umeå University, assessed whether this patient population had a higher risk of death after catching the 2019 coronavirus infection (COVID -19) the individuals without severe mental disorders.
Population
In the cross-sectional, population-based study, the Swedish Board for Health and Welfare (Socialstyrelsen) provided anonymous summary data for further analysis.
The researchers compared the number of COVID-19-related deaths in individuals with severe mental disorders and without SMD. The team also measured the odds ratio (OR) for the entire sample and by age, as well as 4 comorbidities – diabetes, cardiovascular disease, hip tension, and chronic lung disease.
The sample data included individuals in the Swedish population over 20 years between 11 March and 15 June 2020. The study included individuals suffering from dementia. psychiatric disorder included schizophrenia and bipolar, but did not include depression or anxiety.
Results
In total, there was a sample of 7.9 million patients, 103,999 with severe mental disorders and 7.8 million in the control group. There were 130 (0.1%) COVID-19-related deaths in the study group and 4945 (0.06%) in the control group. This corresponds to an OR of 1.98 (95% CI, 1.66–2.35; P. <0.001).
Moreover, the odds were fourfold for the 60-79 year-old group and 1.5-fold for cardiovascular disease, while individuals with SMD had none of the risk factors under study. -fold of COVID-19 related deaths.
“Our first results identify people with SMD as another group at increased risk for COVID-19-related deaths,” the authors wrote. “In terms of comorbidities, future studies should examine the anxious or intervening role in the relationship between SMD and COVID-19-related deaths. ”
Policy Decisions
The researchers believe that the first results should help shape policy decisions regarding COVID-19 pandemic disease.
“We are seeing high mortality due to COVID-19 among the elderly with severe mental disorders, which gives us reason to consider whether this group should be prioritized for vaccines,” Maripuu said in a statement.
Previous studies have shown that severe mental disorders have a significant impact on life expectancy, which can be shortened by 10-20 years. Symbolic disorders make up at least 50% of short life expectancy.
Premature deaths are usually caused by cardiovascular disease.
However, infectious diseases may also contribute to the shorter life expectancy in this patient.
The study, “Death Related to Coronavirus Disease (COVID-19) in Individuals with Severe Mental Illness in Sweden during the Early Months of the Revolution — A Cross-Departmental Study of a Table-Based Study Sluagh, ”published online in Boundaries in Psychology.