Depression Increases More Than Three-Fold In Wake Of Pandemic, Study Finds

Medical experts and public health leaders have been expressing concern about the wave of mental health problems caused by the coronavirus pandemic. Some have even referred to it as a possible second pandemic.

Now there’s evidence to support that concern. On September 2, 2020, researchers at Boston University School of Public Health released the first national study to document depression severity during the pandemic. More than a quarter of the 1,441 adults surveyed at the end of March and first half of April — 27.8% — reported depression symptoms.

The report, published in the journal JAMA Network Open, comes on the heels of a CDC survey that found 40% of adults in the U.S. are struggling with mental health issues connected to the pandemic.

The level of depression surprised researchers, according to lead BU researcher, Catherine Ettman. Ettman said the BU study also found people with fewer financial resources were more likely to have depression than those in a better economic position.

The study found higher levels of depression symptoms in all demographic groups and across all levels of depression severity.

Excerpted from “Depression Increases More Than Three-Fold In Wake Of Pandemic” on WBUR an NPR radio station. Read the full article.

Listen to this 4-minute segment on WBUR’s All Things Considered:

Source: WBUR | Depression Increases More Than Three-Fold In Wake Of Pandemic, BU Study Finds, https://www.wbur.org/commonhealth/2020/09/02/conornavirus-depression-study | © Copyright WBUR 2020

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