According to the study published in The Lancet, the pandemic caused an additional 53 million instances of severe depressive disorder and 76 million cases of anxiety disorders.
According to the first global assessment of Covid-19's influence on mental health, the pandemic has resulted in a considerable increase in severe depressive and anxiety disorders worldwide, impacting women and younger people more in 2020.
According to the study published in The Lancet, the pandemic caused an additional 53 million instances of severe depressive disorder and 76 million cases of anxiety disorders. According to the authors, the nations most impacted by the pandemic in 2020 had the most significant rise in major depressive disorder and anxiety disorder patients. They also urged governments and policymakers to take immediate action to enhance global mental health systems to address the increasing demand caused by the pandemic.
Countries with high Covid-19 infection rates and significant restrictions in human movement due to actions like lockdowns and school closures had the most significant increases in the frequency of major depressive disorder and anxiety disorders.
Before the epidemic, most nations' mental healthcare systems were under-resourced and disorganised in their service delivery.
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No study has previously examined the worldwide impact of the Covid-19 pandemic on the prevalence of major depressive disorder and anxiety disorders in 2020. A comprehensive literature review was conducted to find demographic survey data released between January 1, 2020, and January 29, 2021, to achieve this result. The systematic review found 5,683 distinct data sources, 48 of which satisfied the inclusion criteria (one of which was reported across two regions).
The majority of research came from Western Europe (22) and high-income North America (14), with the rest coming from Australasia (5), high-income Asia Pacific (5), East Asia (2), and Central Europe (1).
According to the meta-analysis, increased Covid-19 infection rate and reduced movement of people were associated with increased prevalence of major depressive disorder and anxiety disorders, implying that countries hardest hit by the pandemic in 2020 had the most significant increases in the disorders' prevalence. Model projections indicate that in the absence of the pandemic, there would have been 193 million instances of major depressive disorder (2,471 cases per 100,000 population) worldwide in 2020.
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According to model projections, if the pandemic had not occurred, there would have been 298 million instances of anxiety disorders (3,825 per 100,000 population) worldwide in 2020. In 2020, younger individuals were more affected by severe depression and anxiety disorders than older age groups. Even before the pandemic, major depressive disorder and anxiety disorders – which can raise the risk of other health outcomes such as suicide – were significant contributions to the global illness burden, impacting millions of men and women of all ages worldwide.