Department of Dynamic and Clinical Psychology, Sapienza University of Rome, Italy.
Department of Psychology, Sapienza University of Rome, Italy.
Sleep Med. 2020 Nov;75:12-20. doi: 10.1016/j.sleep.2020.05.011. Epub 2020 May 12.
The 2019 Coronavirus Disease (COVID-19) pandemic has become a global health emergency. The extreme actions aimed to reduce virus diffusion have profoundly changed the lifestyles of the Italian population. Moreover, fear of contracting the infection has generated high levels of anxiety. This study aimed to understand the psychological impact of the COVID-19 outbreak on sleep quality, general anxiety symptomatology, and psychological distress.
An online survey collected information on socio-demographic data and additional information concerning the COVID-19 pandemic. Furthermore, sleep quality, sleep disorders, generalized anxiety symptoms, psychological distress, and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptomatology related to COVID-19 were assessed.
This study included 2291 respondents. The results revealed that 57.1% of participants reported poor sleep quality, 32.1% high anxiety, 41.8% high distress, and 7.6% reported PTSD symptomatology linked to COVID-19. Youth and women, those uncertain regarding possible COVID-19 infection, and greater fear of direct contact with those infected by COVID-19 had an increased risk of developing sleep disturbances, as well as higher levels of anxiety and distress. Finally, a significant relationship between sleep quality, generalized anxiety, and psychological distress with PTSD symptoms related to COVID-19 was evidenced.
Our findings indicate that the COVID-19 pandemic appears to be a risk factor for sleep disorders and psychological diseases in the Italian population, as previously reported in China. These results should be used as a starting point for further studies aimed to develop psychological interventions to minimize the brief and long-term consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic.
2019 年冠状病毒病（COVID-19）大流行已成为全球卫生紧急事件。为了减少病毒传播而采取的极端措施，极大地改变了意大利民众的生活方式。此外，对感染的恐惧产生了高度的焦虑。本研究旨在了解 COVID-19 爆发对睡眠质量、一般焦虑症状和心理困扰的心理影响。
一项在线调查收集了社会人口统计学数据和与 COVID-19 大流行相关的其他信息。此外，还评估了睡眠质量、睡眠障碍、广泛性焦虑症状、心理困扰和与 COVID-19 相关的创伤后应激障碍（PTSD）症状。
本研究共纳入 2291 名参与者。结果表明，57.1%的参与者报告睡眠质量差，32.1%的参与者焦虑程度高，41.8%的参与者心理困扰程度高，7.6%的参与者报告与 COVID-19 相关的 PTSD 症状。年轻人和女性、对可能感染 COVID-19 感到不确定的人以及对与 COVID-19 感染者直接接触的恐惧程度较高的人，发生睡眠障碍以及焦虑和困扰程度较高的风险增加。最后，证据表明睡眠质量、广泛性焦虑和心理困扰与与 COVID-19 相关的 PTSD 症状之间存在显著关系。
我们的研究结果表明，COVID-19 大流行似乎是意大利人群中睡眠障碍和心理疾病的一个危险因素，这与之前在中国的报告一致。这些结果应作为进一步研究的起点，旨在制定心理干预措施，以尽量减少 COVID-19 大流行的短期和长期后果。
