Temperament and character of patients with alcohol toxicity during COVID - 19 pandemic.

BACKGROUND: Corona virus epidemic may be acts as a stressor or trauma that affects both physical health and mental health. People exhibited various reactive behaviors to confront with this stressful situation. In Iran, one of the common motives for alcohol consumption is to scape problems and cope with stresses. It has been shown that personality factors influence alcohol consumption, since they are associated with drinking motives. The main purpose of this study was to investigate the correlation between temperament and character and alcohol abuse. METHODS: This cross-section study was conducted on 135 alcohol intoxicated patients admitted to emergency room in March 2020 and 255 participants who were randomly selected from public in Shiraz. A questionnaire consisted of TCI (Temperament and character inventory) and several questions about COVID-19 pandemic. It was completed by a trained interviewer using the matched answer technique. Demographic factors were self-reported. RESULTS: Among the alcohol intoxicated group, 117 (86.7%) were males and 18(13.3%) were females. The mean age of the participants was 32.43 ± 10.81 years. Among control group, 99 (38.8%) were males and 156 (61.2%) were females. The mean age of control group was 33.12 ± 14.77 years. Alcohol toxicity was mostly observed among the young males (male/female ratio was 6.45). According to temperament and character index, mean scores of novelty seeking, harm avoidant, and self-transcendence were higher in the alcohol toxicity group than normal population (P < 0.01). Mean scores of reward dependent, cooperativeness, and self-directedness were higher in normal population than the alcohol toxicity group (P < 0.001). The mean score of persistence was not significantly different between methanol intoxicated and normal population groups (P = 0.718). CONCLUSION: Alcohol intoxicated patients had higher scores of novelty-seeking and self-transcendence and lower scores of reward-dependency scores, cooperativeness and self-directedness. These scores are associated with higher likelihood of personality disorders.

Mental health status during COVID-19 pandemic in Fars Province, Iran: timely measures.

BACKGROUND: The current corona virus pandemic is acting as a stressor or trauma, which not only threats physical health status, but also threats mental health status and well-being of people. Currently, COVID-19 pandemic is a life-threatening unpredictable condition accompanied with a large number of uncertainties. The present study has mainly aimed to assess mental health and the relevant social factors during this pandemic in Fars province. METHODS: This cross-sectional study was performed on 922 participants in Fars province, Iran, using internet-based data collection technique. All the included participants filled out the General Health Questionnaire (GHQ-28). Moreover, demographic variables and some social factors were evaluated by asking some questions. All the participants were ensured of the confidentiality of the collected data, and willingly completed the questionnaire. RESULTS: Among the participants, there were 629 women (68.2%) and 293 men (31.2%). The mean age of the participants was 36.98 ± 11.08 years old. Four hundred twenty-five subjects (46.1%) obtained GHQ-28 scores above the cut-off point, and accordingly, they were suspected of having poor mental health statuses. Women, in comparison to men (OR = 2.034, 95%:1.62-3.28), and individuals aged < 50 years old, in comparison to those aged > 50 years old (OR: 4.01 95%:2.15-7.50), have poorer mental health statuses. Trusting on media, health authorities, and cooperation with policy makers, as well as having uncertainty on information about Coronavirus pandemic were also shown to be associated with poor mental health condition (P < 0.05). CONCLUSION: The present study revealed that the number of those people with suspected poor mental health in Fars province significantly increased compared to a previous study using the same questionnaire. Furthermore, the participants who had less trust in media and policymakers were more prone to mental health problems. Therefore, it can be concluded that supporting people in these life-threatening pandemic crises is of great importance, so the policy makers and media must present reliable and valid information to people as soon as possible.