The pandemic is causing a surge in cases of depression and anxiety worldwide.
One of the many consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic has been the increase in reported cases of depression and anxiety worldwide, disproportionately affecting women and young people. This is the main conclusion of a study published in The Lancet, which analyzed more than 5,000 studies published in 204 countries on the impact of COVID-19 on the prevalence of anxiety and depression. It is the first known study to compile this impact globally and to provide data segmented by age, sex, and geographic region.
According to this study, the pandemic led to a 28% increase in cases of major depression and a 26% increase in cases of anxiety globally. In numbers, this means that, in addition to the common prevalence of these two disorders, 53 million more cases of depressive disorder and 76 million more cases of anxiety were reported.
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Researchers estimate that without the pandemic, the expected number of major depression cases would have been 193 million, but after analyzing thousands of studies, the figure that emerges is 246 million.
This study, led by the University of Queensland (Australia), has some limitations due to the data quality in some states, making it difficult to compare countries. Nevertheless, the study's results indicate that the countries most affected by the coronavirus, with higher infection rates and stricter social restrictions, experienced the greatest increase in the prevalence of mental health problems.
Women and young people are the most affected by depression and anxiety
One aspect that has been confirmed is the greater impact on women and young people. In the case of women, it's important to remember that they already have twice the risk of suffering from depression compared to men. With the pandemic and the resulting social and economic problems, women have been more severely affected, both in terms of depression, with 35.5 million cases compared to 17.7 million for men, and anxiety, with 51.8 million diagnosed cases compared to 24.4 million for men.
Among the young people analyzed, depression and anxiety are most prevalent among those aged 20 to 24. The number of cases decreases with age. One of the main causes of the increase in depression and anxiety in this population group is related to unemployment.
The need to strengthen mental health systems is one of the conclusions highlighted by the study's researchers. They believe this study should encourage further research in this field to determine the geographical distribution of depression and anxiety prevalence, as well as to understand the underlying mechanisms for improving mental health in the context of the pandemic.
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