Mental health during the COVID-19 pandemic, impact of childhood trauma in psychiatric disorders, and predictable biomarkers for bipolar disorder

Excerpt

We have been experiencing the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic since the early 2020. Patients with major mental disorders are recognized as a risk for adverse outcomes. Using the Goettingen psychosocial Burden and Symptoms Inventory (Goe-BSI), Bartels and colleagues evaluated psychosocial burden, psychiatric symptoms, and resilience at the end of the first (April/May 2020) and the second lockdown in Germany (November/December 2020) [1]. Psychosocial burden varied significantly overtime with an increase from the pre-pandemic to the initial phase, followed by a steady decrease across both lockdowns, normalizing in November/December 2020. Furthermore, female gender, high adjustment disorder symptom load at baseline, and psychiatric comorbidities were risk factors for high levels and an unfavorable course of psychosocial burden. Most psychiatric symptoms changed minimally, while resilience decreased over time. It is of interest to investigate a turning point at which coping capacities are depleted [1]. …