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According to a study examining the pandemic, one in five people who survive COVID-19 will be diagnosed with a psychiatric disorder within 90 days.
The most common conditions that recovered patients are diagnosed with include anxiety, depression and insomnia, although the researchers also found significantly higher risks of dementia.
It is given as the number of people they died with coronavirus in the UK exceeds the 50,000 mark, according to government data, highlighting the devastating impact of the virus on the country.
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“People were worried COVID-19 survivors will be at a greater risk of mental health problems, and our findings show that this is likely, “said Professor Paul Harrison, a psychiatrist at the University of Oxford.
The mechanism that causes the increased risk of mental illness is not yet known and deserves urgent investigation, Professor Harrison said.
“Health services need to be ready to provide assistance, especially as our results are likely to be underestimated [of the number of patients in psychiatric care],” He added.
The study, published this week in the journal Lancet Psychiatry, analyzed the electronic health records of 69 million people in the United States, including 62,000 people diagnosed with COVID-19.
It found that in the three months following a positive test, 20 percent of survivors received their first-ever diagnosis of anxiety, depression, or insomnia – roughly double the illnesses that occur in other patient groups.
The research adds to the observations and evidence that the coronavirus can impact the brain and mind.
“This is likely due to a combination of the psychological stressors associated with this particular pandemic and the physical effects of the disease,” according to Dr Michael Bloomfield, a consultant psychiatrist at University College London.
Despite the latest government death figures, the UK probably crossed the 50,000 death mark some time ago.
Government data includes people who have died within 28 days of testing positive for COVID-19.
But separate data published by UK statistical agencies – which includes deaths when COVID-19 was mentioned on the death certificate – shows there have now been 65,000 deaths caused by the UK coronavirus.
It comes after the government’s chief science advisor, Sir Patrick Vallance, said in March that keeping the UK death toll below 20,000 would be a “good result” from the pandemic.
With coronavirus deaths on the rise in the UK, the government hopes a vaccine could start rolling out in December after one under development was found to be 90% effective in preventing people from contracting the virus.
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