Department of Preventive Medicine, College of Medicine, Catholic University of Korea, Seoul, Korea.
Division of Health and Nutrition Survey and Analysis, Bureau of Chronic Disease Prevention and Control, Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency, Cheongju, Korea.
Epidemiol Health. 2022;44:e2022042. doi: 10.4178/epih.e2022042. Epub 2022 Apr 25.
Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) and the associated social distancing, limited freedom, and fear of an uncertain future are expected to have substantial mental health effects. We investigated mental health responses in the community during the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic in Korea.
We used 2016-2019 and 2020 data from the Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (KNHANES) to assess pre-pandemic and pandemic mental health status, respectively, in terms of perceived severe stress, depression, and suicidal plans. All analyses were gender-stratified. Pre-specified subgroup analyses were performed according to age, employment status, and household income.
The percentage of Korean adults with suicidal plans increased significantly from 1.3%p (95% confidence interval [CI], 1.1 to 1.5) in 2016-2019 to 1.8%p (95% CI, 1.4 to 2.1) in 2020. Individuals in their 20s and 40s showed a marked increase in suicidal plans (1.2%p; 95% CI, 0.0 to 2.3 and 0.9%p; 95% CI, 0.0 to 1.8, respectively). In men, depression and perceived severe stress increased significantly from pre-COVID-19 to 2020. There was a 2.4%p (95% CI, 0.8 to 4.0) increase in depression among standard workers and a 2.9%p increase in depression in individuals in the second-highest quintile of household income from 2016 and 2018 to 2020.
As COVID-19 continued, mental health issues such as suicidal plans, depression, and severe stress increased significantly in young men and people in the second-highest quintile of household income. Proactive community mental health efforts are needed to prevent increases in the suicide rate resulting from prolonged exposure to the COVID-19 pandemic.
2019 年冠状病毒病（COVID-19）及其相关的社交距离、自由受限和对不确定未来的恐惧预计会对心理健康产生重大影响。我们调查了韩国 COVID-19 大流行第一年社区的心理健康反应。
我们使用了 2016-2019 年和 2020 年韩国国家健康和营养检查调查（KNHANES）的数据，分别评估了大流行前和大流行期间的心理健康状况，包括感知到的严重压力、抑郁和自杀计划。所有分析均按性别分层。根据年龄、就业状况和家庭收入进行了预设的亚组分析。
韩国成年人自杀计划的比例从 2016-2019 年的 1.3%p（95%置信区间[CI]，1.1-1.5）显著增加到 2020 年的 1.8%p（95%CI，1.4-2.1）。20 多岁和 40 多岁的个体自杀计划明显增加（1.2%p；95%CI，0.0-2.3 和 0.9%p；95%CI，0.0-1.8）。男性中，抑郁和感知严重压力从 COVID-19 前到 2020 年显著增加。标准工人的抑郁增加了 2.4%p（95%CI，0.8-4.0），2016 年和 2018 年家庭收入第二高五分位数的个体的抑郁增加了 2.9%p。
随着 COVID-19 的持续，年轻男性和家庭收入第二高五分位数的人群的自杀计划、抑郁和严重压力等心理健康问题显著增加。需要积极开展社区心理健康工作，以防止因长期接触 COVID-19 大流行而导致自杀率上升。
