Longitudinal mental health state during the COVID-19 pandemic. Longitudinal change of mental symptoms and its predictors during the COVID-19 pandemic: A prospective longitudinal study on Spanish population.

OBJECTIVE: The general objective of this study is to analyze the change in mental health and post-traumatic symptoms over 6 months during the COVID-19 pandemic in a Spanish community sample, with a particular focus on individual differences in longitudinal change in symptoms and its predictors. METHOD: This longitudinal prospective study surveyed a Spanish community sample three times (T1: during the initial outbreak, T2: after 4 weeks and T3: after 6 months). Four thousand one hundred and thirty-nine participants from all the Spanish regions completed the questionnaires. However, the longitudinal analysis was performed only with participants which responded at least two times (1,423 participants). Mental health assessments included depression, anxiety, and stress (measured by the Depression, Anxiety and Stress Scale (DASS-21) and post-traumatic symptoms were assessed by the Impact of Event Scale-Revised (IES-R). RESULTS: All the mental health variables achieved worse results at T2. Depression, stress, and posttraumatic symptoms did not recover at T3 when compared with the initial measure, while anxiety was practically stable across the timeline. Women, younger age, having a previous mental health diagnosis and contact with individuals with COVID-19 were linked to worse psychological evolution during the 6-months period. A good perception of one's physical health may be a protective factor. CONCLUSIONS: After 6 months of the pandemic, the general population's mental health was still worse than at the initial outbreak for most of the variables analyzed. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2023 APA, all rights reserved).

Immediate Psychological Response during the Very Early Stage of the Coronavirus Pandemic (COVID-19) in a Spanish Community Sample.

The World Health Organization declared a pandemic due to COVID-19 on 11 March 2020 and remarked on the relevance of studying its consequences on mental health. A cross-sectional study was conducted to evaluate the immediate psychological response to the pandemic and quarantine in Spain.

Respuesta psicológica inmediata durante una etapa muy temprana de la pandemia por coronavirus (COVID-19) en una muestracomunitaria española / Immediate Psychological Response during the Very Early Stage of the Coronavirus Pandemic (COVID-19) in a Spanish Community Sample

Introducción: La Organización Mundial de la Salud declaró la pandemia por COVID-19 el 11 de marzo de 2020 ysubrayó la importancia de estudiar sus consecuencias en lasalud mental de la población. Se presenta un estudio transversal evaluando las respuestas psicológicas a la primera olade la pandemia en España.Metodología. Entre el 23 y 28 de marzo, se realizó unaencuesta online en una muestra española seleccionada trasun muestreo en bola de nieve. Se recogieron variables sociodemográficas, de salud y comportamentales. Se evaluaron laansiedad y depresión a través de la Escala de Depresión, Ansiedad y Estrés (DASS-21), los síntomas postraumáticos a través de la Escala de Impacto del Evento Revisada (IES-R) y lospatrones de autocuidado con la Escala de Autocuidado (SCS).Resultados. Se incluyeron 3524 participantes, 24,1 %mostraron síntomas postraumáticos moderados o severos,21,9 % refirieron síntomas depresivos moderados, severos o extremadamente severos y 32 % síntomas ansiososmoderados, severos o extremadamente severos. El génerofemenino, la menor edad, menor nivel educativo, diagnóstico psiquiátrico previo, peor salud física, contacto con COVID-19, falta de rutinas y algunos síntomas psicológicos serelacionaron con peores respuestas psicológicas.Conclusiones. Se confirma el impacto sobre la saludmental que la primera ola de la pandemia tuvo en España yse identifican algunas variables relacionadas con peor respuesta que pueden resultar útiles en la prevención en salud mental en futuras situaciones equivalentes. (AU)

Introduction: The World Health Organization declared apandemic due to COVID-19 on 11 March 2020 and remarkedon the relevance of studying its consequences on mentalhealth. A cross-sectional study was conducted to evaluatethe immediate psychological response to the pandemic andquarantine in Spain.Methods. From March 23 to 28, an online survey wasconducted in a Spanish community sample. Sociodemographic,health and behavioral variables were surveyed. Depressionand anxiety sypmtoms were measured by the Depressión,Anxiety and Stress Scale (DASS-21), posttraumatic symptomsby the Impact of Event Scale-Revised (IES-R) and self-carepatterns by the Self-Care Scale (SCS).Results. 3524 respondents were included, 24.1%showed moderate or severe psychological impact, 21.9%reported moderate, severe or extremely severe depressionand 32% moderate, severe or extremely severe anxiety.Female gender, younger age, low education, psychiatricdiagnosis, worse physical health, contact history, lack ofroutines, and some psychological symptoms were related toworse psychological responses.Conclusions. This study provides evidence for a negativemental health impact of the pandemic in the Spanishcommunity that started at the early stages and identifiessome variables linked to worse psychological response. (AU)

How did Different Generations Cope with the COVID-19 Pandemic? Early Stages of the Pandemic in Spain / ¿Cómo se Enfrentaron las Diferentes Generaciones a la Pandemia por COVID-19? Primeras Etapas de la Pandemia en España

BACKGROUND: The World Health Organization has highlighted the importance of studying the consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic on mental health. The aim of this study is to examine the role of age in the early psychological responses to the pandemic in a Spanish community sample, focusing on how different generations coped with it. METHOD: An online survey was conducted during the early stages of the quarantine. Sociodemographic, health and behavioral variables were compared for five age groups. Mental health was assessed by the Depression, Anxiety and Stress Scale (DASS-21) and psychological impacts were assessed by the Impact of Event Scale-Revised (IES-R). RESULTS: 3,524 participants were included (Mage = 39.24, SDage = 12.00). Participants aged between 18 and 33 years old showed more hyperactivation and evitation, were more depressed, anxious and stressed. Those aged between 26 and 33 years old showed more intrusion. Those aged between 18 and 25 years old suffered more sleep disturbances, claustrophobia and somatization and maintained worse routines. Elderly people showed better psychological responses in general. CONCLUSIONS: This study provides initial evidence that the negative psychological impact of COVID-19 pandemic hits young people harder. These results should be taken into account when developing specific evidence-based strategies

ANTECEDENTES: la Organización Mundial de la Salud ha destacado la importancia de estudiar sus consecuencias sobre la salud mental de la COVID-19. Esta investigación estudia el papel de la edad sobre las respuestas psicológicas tempranas a la pandemia. MÉTODO: se realizó una encuesta online en la población adulta de España durante la cuarentena. Las variables sociodemofráficas, de salud y conductuales fueron estudiadas en 5 grupos de edad. El estado mental se estudió a través del DASS-21 (Depression, Anxiety and Stress Scale) y el impacto psicológico a través del IES-R (Impact of Event Scale-Revised). RESULTADOS: 3.524 participantes fueron incluidos (Medad = 39.24, DTedad = 12.00). Los participantes entre 18 y 33 se mostraban más hiperactivados, evitativos, ansiosos, deprimidos y estresados. Aquellos entre 26 y 33 años presentaban más intrusión. Los participantes entre 18 y 25 años dormían peor, presentaban más claustrofobia y somatizaciones, mayores dificultades para mantener rutinas, mientras que los mayores presentaban mejores respuestas en general. CONCLUSIONES: este estudio indica que la población española más joven se ha visto más afectada por las consecuencias psicológicas de la pandemia. Algunas de las diferencias en conductas y preocupaciones que dependieron de la edad deberían tenerse en cuenta para elaborar estrategias de intervención

How did Different Generations Cope with the COVID-19 Pandemic? Early Stages of the Pandemic in Spain.

BACKGROUND: The World Health Organization has highlighted the importance of studying the consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic on mental health. The aim of this study is to examine the role of age in the early psychological responses to the pandemic in a Spanish community sample, focusing on how different generations coped with it. METHOD: An online survey was conducted during the early stages of the quarantine. Sociodemographic, health and behavioral variables were compared for five age groups. Mental health was assessed by the Depression, Anxiety and Stress Scale (DASS-21) and psychological impacts were assessed by the Impact of Event Scale-Revised (IES-R). RESULTS: 3,524 participants were included (Mage = 39.24, SDage = 12.00). Participants aged between 18 and 33 years old showed more hyperactivation and evitation, were more depressed, anxious and stressed. Those aged between 26 and 33 years old showed more intrusion. Those aged between 18 and 25 years old suffered more sleep disturbances, claustrophobia and somatization and maintained worse routines. Elderly people showed better psychological responses in general. CONCLUSIONS: This study provides initial evidence that the negative psychological impact of COVID-19 pandemic hits young people harder. These results should be taken into account when developing specific evidence-based strategies.

Comparison of Eye Movement Desensitization Reprocessing and Cognitive Behavioral Therapy as Adjunctive Treatments for Recurrent Depression: The European Depression EMDR Network (EDEN) Randomized Controlled Trial.

Background: Treatment of recurrent depressive disorders is currently only moderately successful. Increasing evidence suggests a significant relationship between adverse childhood experiences and recurrent depressive disorders, suggesting that trauma-based interventions could be useful for these patients. Objectives: To investigate the efficacy of Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing therapy (EMDR) in addition to antidepressant medication (ADM) in treating recurrent depression. Design: A non-inferiority, single-blind, randomized clinical controlled trial comparing EMDR or CBT as adjunctive treatments to ADM. Randomization was carried out by a central computer system. Allocation was carried out by a study coordinator in each center. Setting: Two psychiatric services, one in Italy and one in Spain. Participants: Eighty-two patients were randomized with a 1:1 ratio to the EMDR group (n = 40) or CBT group (n = 42). Sixty-six patients, 31 in the EMDR group and 35 in the CBT group, were included in the completers analysis. Intervention: 15 ± 3 individual sessions of EMDR or CBT, both in addition to ADM. Participants were followed up at 6-months. Main outcome measure: Rate of depressive symptoms remission in both groups, as measured by a BDI-II score <13. Results: Sixty-six patients were analyzed as completers (31 EMDR vs. 35 CBT). No significant difference between the two groups was found either at the end of the interventions (71% EMDR vs. 48.7% CBT) or at the 6-month follow-up (54.8% EMDR vs. 42.9% CBT). A RM-ANOVA on BDI-II scores showed similar reductions over time in both groups [F(6,59) = 22.501, p < 0.001] and a significant interaction effect between time and group [F(6,59) = 3.357, p = 0.006], with lower BDI-II scores in the EMDR group at T1 [mean difference = -7.309 (95% CI [-12.811, -1.806]), p = 0.010]. The RM-ANOVA on secondary outcome measures showed similar improvement over time in both groups [F(14,51) = 8.202, p < 0.001], with no significant differences between groups [F(614,51) = 0.642, p = 0.817]. Conclusion: Although these results can be considered preliminary only, this study suggests that EMDR could be a viable and effective treatment for reducing depressive symptoms and improving the quality of life of patients with recurrent depression. TRIAL REGISTRATION: ISRCTN09958202.

Validity and reliability of the Spanish version of the Somatoform Dissociation Questionnaire (SDQ-20).

BACKGROUND: The Somatoform Dissociation Questionnaire (SDQ-20) is a self-reported questionnaire measuring somatoform dissociation. The aim of this study is to analyze the psychometric properties of the Spanish version of the SDQ-20 and its short version (SDQ-5). METHODS: Validity and reliability were examined in a sample of 360 psychiatric outpatients: 38 dissociative (conversion) disorders, 30 dissociative (psychoform) disorders, and 292 patients suffering from other disorders. Dissociative disorders were diagnosed using the SCID-D and a specific interview for conversion disorders. RESULTS: Subjects meeting criteria for any dissociative or conversion disorder scored significantly higher in the SDQ-20 (criterion validity). Somatoform dissociation, psychoform dissociation and early trauma were significantly correlated (construct validity). An alpha coefficient of .866 (reliability) and a test-retest correlation of 0.91 were obtained. The cut-off score maximizing sensitivity and specificity was 27.5 for psychoform dissociative disorders (sensitivity of 81.6% and specificity of 71.0%) and 29.5 for conversion disorders (81.6% and 71.0%). For the SDQ-5, the coefficient alpha was 0.561 and the selected cut-off score was 5.5 (sensitivity of 73.33% and specificity of 70.41%). CONCLUSIONS: The Spanish version of the SDQ-20 presents good psychometric properties while the SDQ-5 shows worse characteristics and its use with Spanish samples is not recommended.

Integrating neurobiology of emotion regulation and trauma therapy: reflections on EMDR therapy.

Emotion dysregulation is a frequent feature in trauma-related disorders. Different kinds of emotion dysregulation seem to be linked to particular psychiatric conditions, and there is growing evidence of the association between neurobiological correlates and those dysregulation patterns. Nevertheless, many of the recent findings from the field of the neurobiology have not been translated into clinical practice and are insufficiently contemplated in trauma-oriented therapies. The aim of this article is to review recent developments in the field of emotion regulation connecting these issue with the practical implementation of psychotherapeutic procedures. The evaluation of emotion dysregulation patterns can guide decision making during the therapy independently to the approach, but there are some findings that can be especially useful for some concrete modalities of therapy. In this article we will focus our discussion on how emotion dysregulation may influence eye movement desensitization and reprocessing (EMDR) treatment in trauma-related disorders. EMDR is a well-defined and protocol-based intervention, with a strong empirical support for post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). We describe how different patterns of emotion dysregulation may influence EMDR treatment and procedures, and also how the application of EMDR beyond non-dissociative PTSD should take into account the predominant emotion-regulation strategies in specific posttraumatic disorders.