Long-term psychiatric morbidities among SARS survivors

• Published in: General hospital psychiatry Vol. 31; no. 4; pp. 318 - 326
• Main Authors: Mak, Ivan Wing Chit, Chu, Chung Ming, Pan, Pey Chyou, Yiu, Michael Gar Chung, Chan, Veronica Lee
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: New York, NY Elsevier Inc 01.07.2009; Elsevier
• Subjects: Adult; Adult and adolescent clinical studies; Anxiety disorders. Neuroses; Biological and medical sciences; Cohort; Cohort Studies; Depressive Disorder - diagnosis; Depressive Disorder - epidemiology; Depressive Disorder - etiology; Disaster Planning; Female; Health Services Needs and Demand; Health Surveys; Hong Kong - epidemiology; Hospitals, General; Hospitals, Religious; Human viral diseases; Humans; Incidence; Infectious diseases; Length of Stay - statistics & numerical data; Male; Medical sciences; Middle Aged; Miscellaneous; Morbidity; Post-traumatic stress disorder; Prevalence; Psychiatric; Psychiatric Status Rating Scales; Psychiatry; Psychology. Psychoanalysis. Psychiatry; Psychopathology. Psychiatry; Quality of Life - psychology; Retrospective Studies; SARS survivors; Severe acute respiratory syndrome; Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome - complications; Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome - psychology; Stress Disorders, Post-Traumatic - diagnosis; Stress Disorders, Post-Traumatic - epidemiology; Stress Disorders, Post-Traumatic - etiology; Survivors - psychology; Viral diseases; Viral diseases of the respiratory system and ent viral diseases; Hong Kong; Asia; China; Cohort; SARS survivors; Severe acute respiratory syndrome; Post-traumatic stress disorder; Psychiatric; Social environment; Human; Lung disease; Respiratory disease; Survivor; Anxiety disorder; Mental health; Posttraumatic stress disorder; Long term; Stress; Infection; Viral disease; Mental disorder; Diagnosis; Public health
• ISSN: 0163-8343; 1873-7714; 1873-7714
• DOI: 10.1016/j.genhosppsych.2009.03.001

Severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) was the first massive infectious disease outbreak of the 21st century. However, it is unlikely that this outbreak will be the last. This study aimed to evaluate the long-term psychiatric morbidities in survivors of SARS. This is a cohort study designed to investigate psychiatric complications among SARS survivors treated in the United Christian Hospital 30 months after the SARS outbreak. Psychiatric morbidities were assessed by the Structured Clinical Interview for DSM-IV, the Impact of Events Scale–Revised and the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale. Functional outcomes were assessed by the Medical Outcomes Study 36-Item Short-Form Health Survey. Ninety subjects were recruited, yielding a response rate of 96.8%. Post-SARS cumulative incidence of DSM-IV psychiatric disorders was 58.9%. Current prevalence for any psychiatric disorder at 30 months post-SARS was 33.3%. One-fourth of the patients had post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), and 15.6% had depressive disorders. The outbreak of SARS can be regarded as a mental health catastrophe. PTSD was the most prevalent long-term psychiatric condition, followed by depressive disorders. Our results highlight the need to enhance preparedness and competence of health care professionals in detecting and managing the psychological sequelae of future comparable infectious disease outbreaks.