Associated Psychological Factors of Viral Load among Self-Isolating Nigerian COVID-19 Patients

Corona virus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a pandemic that has affected millions of people worldwide. The aim of this study was to explore the psychological factors of viral load among COVID-19 patients who were on self-isolation in Nigeria.

This is a cross-sectional study involving five hundred and nine self-isolating COVID-19 patients in Osogbo, Nigeria. They completed a socio-demographic questionnaire, Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD-7) questionnaire, Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-9), Insomnia Severity Index (ISI-7) and Brief Self Rating Scale (BSRS-5). The viral load was inferred from the Cycle threshold (Ct) value.

The prevalence of anxiety symptoms, depressive symptoms, insomnia, and suicidal ideation were 40%, 35.6%, 23%, and 7.3%, respectively. The respondents who had high viral load had significantly higher mean scores compared to those with a low viral load on the anxiety, depression, insomnia, psychological symptoms scales, and suicidal ideation item. There was significant negative correlation between Ct values and the study measures. Only psychological distress and suicidal ideation were the variables that were significantly associated with high viral load.

There is a need to institute measures for mental health surveillance and psychosocial support among Nigerian COVID-19 patients especially during the period of self-isolation.