Psychophysiology Laboratory, Department of Biological Sciences, Federal University of Ouro Preto (Universidade Federal de Ouro Preto - UFOP), Ouro Preto, Minas Gerais (MG), Brazil.
School of Medicine, Department of Family Medicine and Mental and Public Health, Federal University of Ouro Preto (Universidade Federal de Ouro Preto - UFOP), Ouro Preto, MG, Brazil.
Acta Psychol (Amst). 2024 Jul;247:104300. doi: 10.1016/j.actpsy.2024.104300. Epub 2024 May 10.
University students are vulnerable to mental health issues during their academic lives. During the COVID-19 pandemic, university students faced mental distress due to lockdowns and the transition to e-learning. However, it is not known whether these students were also affected specifically by COVID-19-related traumatic events. This study examined the impact of COVID-19-related traumatic events on 2277 university students from two federal institutions of higher education in Brazil. The university students completed an online questionnaire covering demographics, lifestyle habits, health characteristics, COVID-19-related traumatic events, and depression, anxiety, and stress symptoms. The results showed that an increased intensity of COVID-19-related traumatic events was positively associated with stress, anxiety, and depressive symptoms, and each specific type of event was associated with these symptoms. In addition, we found a negative association between these symptoms and male sex and age and a positive association with having or having had a history of cardiovascular, respiratory, neurological, or mental disorders or another disease diagnosed by a physician. In conclusion, this study emphasizes the heightened risk of mental health issues in university students in the face of COVID-19-related traumatic events. Women, young people and people who have or have had a history of disease were the most vulnerable to mental health issues during the COVID-19 pandemic.
大学生在学业生涯中容易受到心理健康问题的影响。在 COVID-19 大流行期间，由于封锁和向在线学习的转变，大学生面临精神困扰。然而，目前尚不清楚这些学生是否也受到与 COVID-19 相关的创伤性事件的具体影响。本研究调查了 COVID-19 相关创伤性事件对来自巴西两所联邦高等教育机构的 2277 名大学生的影响。大学生完成了一份在线问卷，涵盖人口统计学、生活方式习惯、健康特征、COVID-19 相关创伤性事件以及抑郁、焦虑和压力症状。结果表明，COVID-19 相关创伤性事件的强度增加与压力、焦虑和抑郁症状呈正相关，每种特定类型的事件都与这些症状相关。此外，我们发现这些症状与男性性别和年龄呈负相关，与存在或曾经存在心血管、呼吸、神经或精神障碍或其他由医生诊断的疾病呈正相关。总之，本研究强调了 COVID-19 相关创伤性事件下大学生心理健康问题的高风险。女性、年轻人和有或有过病史的人在 COVID-19 大流行期间最容易出现心理健康问题。
