Mental health in pre-COVID-19 and during the COVID-19 pandemic: a comparative study using symptom checklist-90-R

The aim of this study is to search the psychopathological effects of the Coronavirus disease on the patients with psychiatric symptoms on the COVID-19 pandemic process.

The study was designed according to the data obtained from 323 patients (171 women and 152 men) who participated in the study pre-COVID-19 period and 423 patients (205 women and 218 men) who participated in the study during COVID-19 period. All participants underwent the Symptom Checklist-90-Revised (SCL-90-R) examination. The SCL-90-R is a psychiatric screening tool that measures the level of reactions elicited by the compulsion or negative stress of individuals. The SCL-90-R was utilized to define psychiatric symptoms and evaluate psychological problems, statistically compared to patient groups with similar demographic and sociocultural characteristics (education level, marital status).

There were no statistically significant differences in participants' characteristics for the mean age distribution, marital status, education level, and smoking habits between the groups of pre-COVID-19 and during COVID-19 period (p>0.05). When comparing the scores of the participants' SCL-90-R Psychological Symptom Screening Scale and its sub-dimensions before and during the COVID-19 period, no statistically significant difference was found between the scores of the participants in both groups (p>0.05). 187 patients (52.97%) had the disease, and 166 patients (47.03%) did not have the disease during COVID-19 period. It was observed that there was statistically significant difference for obsessive-compulsive and depression scores of the SCL-90-R scale between the participants who had or had not COVID-19 (p<0.05). It was higher in the first group. There was a statistically significant difference between the depression, anxiety and phobic anxiety scores of the vaccinated compared to the unvaccinated participants (p<0.05).

Psychological symptoms general and subscales during the COVID-19 pandemic were similar to pre-pandemic levels according to the SCL-90-R. This is important for planning mental health provisions and for long-term impact of the COVID-19 pandemic.