Prediction of suicide attempts in a prospective cohort study with a nationally representative sample of the US population.

BACKGROUND: There is still little knowledge of objective suicide risk stratification. METHODS: This study aims to develop models using machine-learning approaches to predict suicide attempt (1) among survey participants in a nationally representative sample and (2) among participants with lifetime major depressive episodes. We used a cohort called the National Epidemiologic Survey on Alcohol and Related Conditions (NESARC) that was conducted in two waves and included a nationally representative sample of the adult population in the United States. Wave 1 involved 43 093 respondents and wave 2 involved 34 653 completed face-to-face reinterviews with wave 1 participants. Predictor variables included clinical, stressful life events, and sociodemographic variables from wave 1; outcome included suicide attempt between wave 1 and wave 2. RESULTS: The model built with elastic net regularization distinguished individuals who had attempted suicide from those who had not with an area under the ROC curve (AUC) of 0.89, balanced accuracy 81.86%, specificity 89.22%, and sensitivity 74.51% for the general population. For participants with lifetime major depressive episodes, AUC was 0.89, balanced accuracy 81.64%, specificity 85.86%, and sensitivity 77.42%. The most important predictor variables were a diagnosis of borderline personality disorder, post-traumatic stress disorder, and being of Asian descent for the model in all participants; and previous suicide attempt, borderline personality disorder, and overnight stay in hospital because of depressive symptoms for the model in participants with lifetime major depressive episodes. Random forest and artificial neural networks had similar performance. CONCLUSIONS: Risk for suicide attempt can be estimated with high accuracy.

Validity and Reliability of the Digital Functioning Assessment Short Test (D-FAST) in the Brazilian Sample.

Background: The COVID-19 pandemic has caused major disruptions in all aspects of daily functioning, from school and work to interactions with friends and family. The Functioning Assessment Short Test (FAST) is an interviewer-administered scale validated in the psychiatric sample with no previous study assessing its validity and reliability in a digital format. Thus, we aimed to analyse the psychometric properties of the digital version of the FAST and understand the implications of COVID-19 and restrictive measures on functioning. Methods: Data were collected using an online survey. The psychometric properties of the digital FAST were assessed by confirmatory factor analysis, Cronbach's alpha, and discriminant functional by cluster analysis in a community sample. Results: Out of the total sample, 2,543 (84.1%) were female, and the mean (SD) age was 34.28 (12.46) years. The digital FAST retained the six factors structure observed in the original version, with Cronbach's alpha above 0.9. In addition, we showed evidence of discriminant validity by differentiating three clusters of psychosocial functioning. Clinical and demographic differences between groups explained, in part, the heterogeneity of functioning, thus providing support for the construct validity of the instrument. Conclusion: The digital FAST is a simple and easy-to-understand instrument that provides a multidimensional assessment of functioning without the need for an interviewer. Furthermore, our findings may help to better understand the psychosocial implications of the pandemic and the importance of planning specific interventions to rehabilitee the affected group.

Differential biomarker signatures in unipolar and bipolar depression: A machine learning approach.

OBJECTIVE: This study used machine learning techniques combined with peripheral biomarker measurements to build signatures to help differentiating (1) patients with bipolar depression from patients with unipolar depression, and (2) patients with bipolar depression or unipolar depression from healthy controls. METHODS: We assessed serum levels of interleukin-2, interleukin-4, interleukin-6, interleukin-10, tumor necrosis factor-α, interferon-γ, interleukin-17A, brain-derived neurotrophic factor, lipid peroxidation and oxidative protein damage in 54 outpatients with bipolar depression, 54 outpatients with unipolar depression and 54 healthy controls, matched by sex and age. Depressive symptoms were assessed using the Hamilton Depression Rating Scale. Variable selection was performed with recursive feature elimination with a linear support vector machine kernel, and the leave-one-out cross-validation method was used to test and validate our model. RESULTS: Bipolar vs unipolar depression classification achieved an area under the receiver operating characteristics (ROC) curve (AUC) of 0.69, with 0.62 sensitivity and 0.66 specificity using three selected biomarkers (interleukin-4, thiobarbituric acid reactive substances and interleukin-10). For the comparison of bipolar depression vs healthy controls, the model retained five variables (interleukin-6, interleukin-4, thiobarbituric acid reactive substances, carbonyl and interleukin-17A), with an AUC of 0.70, 0.62 sensitivity and 0.7 specificity. Finally, unipolar depression vs healthy controls comparison retained seven variables (interleukin-6, Carbonyl, brain-derived neurotrophic factor, interleukin-10, interleukin-17A, interleukin-4 and tumor necrosis factor-α), with an AUC of 0.74, a sensitivity of 0.68 and 0.70 specificity. CONCLUSION: Our findings show the potential of machine learning models to aid in clinical practice, leading to more objective assessment. Future studies will examine the possibility of combining peripheral blood biomarker data with other biological data to develop more accurate signatures.

Treatment outcomes of acute bipolar depressive episode with psychosis.

BACKGROUND: The impact of psychosis on the treatment of bipolar depression is remarkably understudied. The primary aim of this study was to compare treatment outcomes of bipolar depressed individuals with and without psychosis. The secondary aim was to compare the effect of lithium and quetiapine, each with adjunctive personalized treatments (APTs), in the psychotic subgroup. METHODS: We assessed participants with DSM-IV bipolar depression included in a comparative effectiveness study of lithium and quetiapine with APTs (the Bipolar CHOICE study). Severity was assessed by the Bipolar Inventory of Symptoms Scale (BISS) and by the Clinical Global Impression Scale-Severity-Bipolar Version (CGI-S-BP). Mixed models were used to assess the course of symptom change, and Cox regression survival analysis was used to assess the time to remission. RESULTS: Psychotic features were present in 10.6% (n = 32) of the depressed participants (n = 303). Those with psychotic features had higher scores on the BISS before (75.2 ± 17.6 vs. 54.9 ± 16.3; P < .001) and after (37.2 ± 19.7 vs. 26.3 ± 18.0; P = .003) 6-month treatment. The CGI-S-BP yielded similar results. Participants with and without psychosis had similar course of symptom improvement and similar time to remission. There was no significant difference in the treatment outcomes of lithium (n = 11) and quetiapine (n = 21) among the psychotic subgroup. CONCLUSION: Bipolar depressive episodes with psychotic features are more severe, and compared to nonpsychotic depressions, present a similar course of improvement. Given the small number of participants presenting psychosis, the lack of statistically significant difference between lithium- and quetiapine-based treatment of psychotic bipolar depressive episodes needs replication in a larger sample.

Decreased activation and subsyndromal manic symptoms predict lower remission rates in bipolar depression.

OBJECTIVE: Activation encompasses energy and activity and is a central feature of bipolar disorder. However, the impact of activation on treatment response of bipolar depression requires further exploration. The aims of this study were to assess the association of decreased activation and sustained remission in bipolar depression and test for factors that could affect this association. METHODS: We assessed participants with Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (4th ed) bipolar depression ( n = 303) included in a comparative effectiveness study of lithium- and quetiapine-based treatments (the Bipolar CHOICE study). Activation was evaluated using items from the Bipolar Inventory of Symptoms Scale. The selection of these items was based on a dimension of energy and interest symptoms associated with poorer treatment response in major depression. RESULTS: Decreased activation was associated with lower remission rates in the raw analyses and in a logistic regression model adjusted for baseline severity and subsyndromal manic symptoms (odds ratio = 0.899; p = 0.015). The manic features also predicted lower remission (odds ratio = 0.934; p < 0.001). Remission rates were similar in the two treatment groups. CONCLUSION: Decreased activation and subsyndromal manic symptoms predict lower remission rates in bipolar depression. Patients with these features may require specific treatment approaches, but new studies are necessary to identify treatments that could improve outcomes in this population.

Early growth response 1 (EGR1) is downregulated in peripheral blood from patients with major psychiatric disorders.

OBJECTIVES: To evaluate relative expression of genes with the potential to translate environmental stimuli into long-term alterations in the brain - namely Early Growth Response (EGR)1, EGR3, and Cryptochrome Circadian Regulator 2 (CRY2) - in peripheral blood from patients with Bipolar Disorder (BD), Schizophrenia (SZ), Major Depressive Disorder (MDD) and healthy controls (HC). METHODS: Thirty individuals ranging from 18 to 60 years were recruited for each group (BD, SZ, MDD or HC) from a Brazilian public hospital. Therefore, individuals' peripheral blood was collected and EGR1, EGR3 and CRY2 gene expression analyzed by PCR Real Time. RESULTS: EGR1 mRNA levels are significantly lower in psychiatric patients when compared to HC, but there is no difference for EGR3 and CRY2. Exploring the findings for each diagnosis, there is a significant difference between each diagnosis group only for EGR1, which was lower in BD, MDD and SZ as compared to HC. No significant correlations were found between gene expression and clinical features. CONCLUSIONS: EGR1 is downregulated in psychiatric patients, regardless of the diagnosis and may be a potential common target in major psychiatric disorders. EGR1, as a transcription factor, modulates many other genes and participates in crucial neuronal and synaptic processes, such as plasticity, neurotransmitters metabolism, vesicular transport and signaling pathways. The study of EGR1 and its upstream regulators in psychiatry might lead to potential new therapeutic targets.

Clinical differences between melancholic and nonmelancholic depression as defined by the CORE system.

BACKGROUND: The definition and delineation of melancholia have remained elusive for an extended period. A longstanding signal of psychomotor disturbance has been operationalized via the observer-rated CORE measure and with CORE-assigned melancholic and nonmelancholic compared in several Australian studies. Replication studies in other regions have not previously been reported. This study compares Brazilian patients with melancholic and nonmelancholic depression according to the CORE measure of psychomotor disturbance in terms of clinical characteristics, suicide ideation, stressful life events, quality of life, parental care, and personality styles. METHODS: A total of 181 patients with unipolar major depression attending a tertiary care outpatient service in Brazil were evaluated in relation to melancholic status and study variables. RESULTS: The CORE-assigned melancholic patients presented higher symptom severity, greater prevalence of suicide ideation, and Axis I comorbidities than nonmelancholics. Scores of dysfunctional personality styles and dysfunctional parental care measures were also higher among melancholics. Quality-of-life scores were low in both groups. LIMITATIONS: The absence of a criterion standard for the diagnosis of melancholia and the use of medication can be potential limitations of the study. CONCLUSION: Differences suggest that CORE-assigned melancholia defines a distinct group of patients and probably a disorder distinct from nonmelancholic depression not only in quantitative but also in qualitative aspects.

Prevalence of psychotic symptoms in those with melancholic and nonmelancholic depression.

The best classification of depressive disorders is still to be established. A melancholic subtype has a lengthy history, and recent research demonstrates its relevance. This study compares the prevalence of psychotic symptoms in nonmelancholic and melancholic depression and assesses whether there is a dimensional pattern in the severity of symptoms among the subtypes. Patients with unipolar depression were assessed for melancholic status, psychotic symptoms, and severity of depression. The diagnosis of melancholia was made by both Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fourth Edition, Text Revision (DSM-IV-TR), criteria and CORE measure. The DSM criteria assigned a much higher percentage of patients as melancholics (67.4%) than did the CORE (24.9%). Prevalence of psychosis was distinctly higher in the melancholics. Symptoms severity was higher among the melancholics when compared with the nonmelancholics. The presence of psychotic symptoms was not associated with an increase in the intensity of depressive symptoms. Psychotic symptoms are more frequently associated with the melancholic subtype of depression. This suggests clinical contiguity between the melancholic and psychotic subtypes and the clinical relevance of identifying melancholia.

Photobiomodulation for Major Depressive Disorder: Linking Transcranial Infrared Light, Biophotons and Oxidative Stress.

ABSTRACT: Incompletely treated major depressive disorder (MDD) poses an enormous global health burden. Conventional treatment for MDD consists of pharmacotherapy and psychotherapy, though a significant number of patients do not achieve remission with such treatments. Transcranial photobiomodulation (t-PBM) is a promising novel therapy that uses extracranial light, especially in the near-infrared (NIR) and red spectra, for biological and therapeutic effects. The aims of this Review are to evaluate the current clinical and preclinical literature on t-PBM in MDD and to discuss candidate mechanisms for effects of t-PBM in MDD, with specific attention to biophotons and oxidative stress. A search on PubMed and ClinicalTrials.gov identified clinical and preclinical studies using t-PBM for the treatment of MDD as a primary focus. After a systematic screening, only 19 studies containing original data were included in this review (9 clinical and 10 preclinical trials). Study results demonstrate consensus that t-PBM is a safe and potentially effective treatment; however, varying treatment parameters among studies complicate definitive conclusions about efficacy. Among other mechanisms of action, t-PBM stimulates the complex IV of the mitochondrial respiratory chain and induces an increase in cellular energy metabolism. We suggest that future trials include biological measures to better understand the mechanisms of action of t-PBM and to optimize treatment efficiency. Of particular interest going forward will be studying potential effects of t-PBM-an external light source on the NIR spectra-on neural circuitry implicated in depression.

Chronic pain predicts a worse response to depression treatment, regardless of thyroid function or psychotropics prescribed.

BACKGROUND: Chronic pain (CP) and thyroid hormones' (TH) abnormalities are associated with depression, but the impact of pain and TH fluctuation on the response to depression treatment is uncertain. METHODS: Eighty-eight patients with major depression were evaluated before and after 6 months of specific treatment, through scales of symptoms' severity (HAM-D-17), psychomotor disturbance (CORE), and quality of life (WHOQOL-Bref). We reviewed psychiatric medications and measured TSH, T3 and T4. We used Generalized Estimating Equations to assess the interaction effect between CP and treatment time on depression severity and TH levels, and Bonferroni to compare means. RESULTS: 47.7 % of the patients had CP. Patients with and without CP did not differ at baseline. At follow-up, those with CP experienced a more modest decrease in symptoms' severity and no improvement in any domain of psychomotor disturbance, contrasting with a decrease of over 40 % from the baseline values of CORE in patients without CP (non-CP). Initial and final scores were respectively: HAM-D CP 24.06 and 19.3, Δ = -4.75; HAM-D non-CP 22.92 and 14.7, Δ = -8.21; CORE CP 5.36 and 5.24, Δ = -0.12; CORE non-CP 5.8 and 3.22, Δ = -2.57. There was no interaction with TH or life quality. Model adjustments for psychotropic drugs received and sensitivity analysis excluding somatic symptoms from severity scales did not impact the results. LIMITATIONS: Findings may not replicate in mildly depressed patients from primary care. Pain scales were not applied. CONCLUSIONS: Individuals with chronic pain showed a suboptimal response to depression treatment, regardless of the medications used or TH levels.

Identifying pathways between psychiatric symptoms and psychosocial functioning in the general population.

The present study aims to identify pathways between psychiatric network symptoms and psychosocial functioning and their associated variables among functioning clusters in the general population. A cross-sectional web-based survey was administered in a total of 3,023 individuals in Brazil. The functioning clusters were derived by a previous study identifying three different groups based on the online Functioning Assessment Short Test. Networking analysis was fitted with all items of the Patient-Reported Outcomes Measurement Information System for depression and for anxiety (PROMIS) using the mixed graphical model. A decision tree model was used to identify the demographic and clinical characteristics of good and low functioning. A total of 926 (30.63%) subjects showed good functioning, 1,436 (47.50%) participants intermediate functioning, and 661 (21.86%) individuals low functioning. Anxiety and uneasy symptoms were the most important nodes for good and intermediate clusters but anxiety, feeling of failure, and depression were the most relevant symptoms for low functioning. The decision tree model was applied to identify variables capable to discriminate individuals with good and low functioning. The algorithm achieved balanced accuracy 0.75, sensitivity 0.87, specificity 0.63, positive predictive value 0.63 negative predictive value 0.87 (p<0.001), and an area under the curve of 0.83 (95%CI:0.79-0.86, p<0.01). Our results show that individuals who present psychological distress are more likely to experience poor functional status, suggesting that this subgroup should receive a more comprehensive psychiatric assessment and mental health care.

Inflammation and damage-associated molecular patterns in major psychiatric disorders.

BACKGROUND: Emerging evidence indicates that inflammation plays an important role as a mechanism underlying mental disorders. However, most of the research on inflammatory mechanisms focuses on serum levels of interleukins and very few studies have investigated molecules that initiate and expand innate immune pathways such as damage-associated molecular patterns (DAMPs). OBJECTIVES: This study investigated the levels of DAMPs among patients diagnosed with major depressive disorder (MDD), bipolar disorder (BD) I and II, schizophrenia (SCZ), and generalized anxiety disorder (GAD). We quantified serum levels of heat shock proteins (HSPs) 70 and 60 and of S100 calcium-binding protein B (S100B). METHODS: Serum levels of HSP70, HSP60, and S100B were assessed in a sample of participants with psychiatric disorders (n = 191) and a control group (CT) (n = 59) using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). RESULTS: Serum HSP70 concentrations were significantly higher in the MDD group compared to the CT, SCZ, and BD groups. The GAD group had higher concentrations of HSP70 than the SCZ group. Exploring associations with medications, lithium (p = 0.003) and clozapine (p = 0.028) were associated with lower HSP70 levels. Approximately 64% of the sample had DAMPs levels below the limits of detection indicated by the respective ELISA kit. CONCLUSION: This was the first study to assess DAMPs levels in a transdiagnostic sample. Our preliminary findings suggest that HSP70 may be associated with MDD pathophysiology. Medications such as lithium and clozapine were associated with lower HSP70 levels in BD and SCZ groups, respectively. Therefore, it is worth mentioning that all participants were medicated and many psychotropic drugs exert an anti-inflammatory effect, possibly reducing the signs of inflammation.

Depression and suicidality severity among TRD patients after 1-year under standard of care: Findings from the TRAL study, a multicenter, multinational, observational study in Latin America.

INTRODUCTION: Treatment resistant depression (TRD) is one of the most pressing issues in mental healthcare in LatAm. However, clinical data and outcomes of standard of care (SOC) are scarce. The present study reported on the Treatment-Resistant Depression in America Latina (TRAL) project 1-year follow-up of patients under SOC assessing clinical presentation and outcomes. MATERIALS AND METHODS: 420 patients with clinical diagnoses of TRD from Argentina, Brazil, Colombia and Mexico were included in a 1-year follow-up to assess clinical outcomes of depression (MADRS) and suicidality (C-SSRS), as well as evolution of clinical symptoms of depression. Patients were assessed every 3 months and longitudinal comparison was performed based on change from baseline to each visit and end of study (12 months). Socio demographic characterization was also performed. RESULTS: Most patients were female (80.9%), married (42.5%) or single (34.4%), with at least 10 years of formal education (71%). MDD diagnosis was set at 37.29 (SD=14.00) years, and MDD duration was 11.11 years (SD=10.34). After 1-year of SOC, 79.1% of the patients were still symptomatic, and 40% of the patients displayed moderate/severe depression. Only 44.1% of the patients achieved a response (≥50% improvement in MADRS), and 60% of the sample failed to achieve remission. Suicidal ideation was reported by more than half of the patients at the end of study. CONCLUSIONS: Depression and suicidality symptoms after a 1-year of SOC is of great concern. Better therapeutic options are needed to tackle this debilitating and burdensome disease.

Mental health, functioning and quality of life between work in the office and work from home employees during first wave of COVID19 in Brazil.

BACKGROUND: COVID-19 was declared a global pandemic early in 2020, period that governments imposed strict measures of social distancing to slow its transmission. However, most essential services remained open, and the work in the office faced a higher risk of infection compared to work in home. We compare the occurrence and potential determinants of mental health outcomes, functioning and quality of life in a sample of Brazilian individuals who worked from home and those who worked in the office during the first wave of COVID-19. METHODS: Data were collected during the first wave of COVID-19, using an online survey to assess sociodemographic and clinical variables, functioning (FAST-D), quality of life (EUROhisQOL), depression (PROMIS depression), anxiety (PROMIS anxiety), and stress symptoms (IES-R scale) in a huge sample consisted of individuals who worked in office (n=1685) and worked from home (n=1338). RESULTS: Analysis revealed that depressive and post-traumatic stress symptoms were less prevalent in individuals who worked from home as well as they have higher functioning and quality of life than those worked in the office. Individuals who worked in the office were younger, more likely to be female, had lower household income level, low education levels and were more unmarried than the other group. CONCLUSION: Our findings support the notion of the negative impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on mental health in both work in the office and work from home; however, the group who worked from home seems to be more resilient with less psychiatric symptoms and better functioning.

Suicidality and Quality of Life in Treatment-Resistant Depression Patients in Latin America: Secondary Interim Analysis of the TRAL Study.

Background: A large proportion of patients with major depressive disorder (MDD) have treatment-resistant depression (TRD). The TRAL study examines the impact of TRD on suicidality and health-related quality of life (HRQoL) among MDD patients in 4 Latin American countries. Methods: In this multicenter, prospective, observational study, MDD patients were recruited from 33 sites in Mexico, Colombia, Brazil, and Argentina. Patients were assessed for TRD, defined as failure to respond to ≥2 antidepressant medications of adequate dose and duration. Other assessments included current disease status, Mini International Neuropsychiatric Interview (MINI), Columbia-Suicide Severity Rating Scale (C-SSRS), 5 Level EQ-5D (EQ-5D-5L), Patient Health Questionnaire-9 (PHQ-9), and Sheehan Disability Scale (SDS). Results: 1,475 MDD patients were included in the analysis (mean age, 45.6 years; 78% women), and 429 met criteria for TRD. Thoughts of suicide and suicide attempts were more common among TRD patients (38.7%) compared with non-TRD patients (24.9%; P < 0.0001), according to the current disease status questionnaire. The C-SSRS showed that lifetime suicidal behavior was significantly more common among TRD patients than non-TRD patients (13.8 vs. 10.0%; P = 0.0384). Compared with non-TRD patients, TRD patients showed significantly greater adverse impacts on QoL (EQ-5D-5L), more severe depression (PHQ-9), and greater functional impairment (SDS). Conclusion: TRD patients in clinical sites from Mexico, Colombia, Brazil, and Argentina were more likely to experience suicidality and negative effects on HRQoL than non-TRD patients.

Earlier age of onset is associated with a pro-inflammatory state in major depressive disorder.

Major depressive disorder (MDD) is a common condition that affects the general population over a wide range of ages, regardless of gender and social background. Early-onset of MDD in adulthood, between ages of 18 and 30 years, is associated with worse outcomes and increased years of disability. Stress load and physical health have been associated with age of onset in MDD. We aim to investigate whether early onset MDD might be associated with changes in systemic inflammatory markers. We examined levels of following cytokines: IL-1ß, IL-6, IL-10 and TNFα in 234 patients with MDD. Higher serum levels of TNFα and IL-1ß are associated with the early onset of the disorder in patients with MDD. IL-6 levels were also higher in the early onset group and IL-10 levels were higher in the late onset group, but with no significant difference. Changes in the anti-inflammatory/pro-inflammatory balance have been described in mood disorders and may be implicated in its severity and pattern of progression. Our findings reinforce that higher serum levels of IL-1ß and TNFα may be associated with the earlier onset subgroup of MDD patients. Future research that target inflammatory markers of immune modulation may be, key in the search for novel preventative therapeutics.

Dosimetry and Clinical Efficacy of Transcranial Photobiomodulation for Major Depression Disorder: Could they Guide Dosimetry for Alzheimer's Disease?

BACKGROUND: Major depressive disorder (MDD) is prevalent and has significant impact on individuals and society. Cognitive symptoms are frequent in MDD and insufficiently treated by antidepressant medications. Transcranial photobiomodulation (t-PBM) is a novel device therapy which shows promise as an antidepressant and pro-cognitive treatment. To date, despite the encouraging results, the optimal stimulation parameters of t-PBM to treat MDD are not established, and clinical studies are very heterogeneous in terms of these parameters. While the literature provides guidance on the appropriate fluence to achieve therapeutic results, little is known on the other parameters. OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the relationship between different parameters and the antidepressant effect of t-PBM. METHODS: We reviewed clinical studies on MDD and on depressive symptoms comorbid with other diseases. We calculated the standardized effect size of the change in symptoms severity before and after t-PBM and we performed a descriptive analysis of the reviewed papers. RESULTS: The greatest effect sizes for the antidepressant effect were found in studies using pulse-wave t-PBM with high peak irradiance (but low average irradiance) over large skin surface. One well-designed and sufficiently powered, double-blind, sham-controlled trial indicated that t-PBM with low irradiance over a small skin surface is ineffective to treat depression. CONCLUSION: The use of t-PBM for Alzheimer's disease and for dementia is still at its inception; these dosimetry lessons from the use of t-PBM for depression might serve as guidance.

COVID-19 and mental health in Brazil: Psychiatric symptoms in the general population.

Public health interventions at general population level are imperative in order to decrease the spread of the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), but they may contribute to widespread emotional distress and increased risk for psychiatric illnesses. We report on the results of an investigation into the occurrence and determinants of psychiatric symptoms among the Brazilian general population (N = 1996). We assessed sociodemographic variables and general mental health (DSM-5 Self-Rated Level 1 Cross-Cutting Symptom Measure), depression (PROMIS depression v.8a), anxiety (PROMIS anxiety v.8a), and post-traumatic stress symptoms (Impact of Event Scale-IES-R scale) using an online web-based survey. Anxiety (81.9%), depression (68%), anger (64.5%), somatic symptoms (62.6%) and sleep problems (55.3%) were the most common psychiatric symptoms. Younger age, female gender, low income, lower level of education, longer period of social distancing, and self-reported history of previous psychiatric illness were strongly associated with higher severity of symptoms. Our results support the negative impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the mental health of the Brazilian population. The high prevalence of psychiatric symptoms observed in our sample indicates that the mental health impact of the COVID-19 pandemic should be considered a public health problem in Brazil. The health systems and individual clinicians must be prepared to offer and implement specific interventions in order to identify and treat psychiatric issues.