Attitudes About COVID-19 and Health: A Mixed-Methods Smartphone-App and Online Survey Study (Preprint)

BACKGROUND Behavioral mitigation strategies to slow the spread of COVID-19 have resulted in sweeping lifestyle changes, with short and long-term psychological, well-being, and quality of life implications. The Attitudes About COVID-19 and Health (ATTACH) study focuses on understanding attitudes and beliefs whilst considering the impact on mental and physical health and the influence of broader demographic and geographic factors on attitudes, beliefs, and mental health burden. OBJECTIVE In this assessment of our first wave of data collection, we provide baseline cohort descriptives of ATTACH study participants in the United Kingdom (UK), United States of America (USA), and Mexico. Additionally, we assess responses to daily poll questions related to COVID-19 and conduct a cross-sectional analysis of baseline assessments collected in the UK between June 26 and October 31, 2020. METHODS The ATTACH study uses smartphone-app technology and online survey data collection. Participants completed poll questions twice daily related to COVID-19 and a monthly survey assessing mental health, social isolation, physical health, and quality of life. Poll question responses were graphed using 95% Clopper-Pearson (exact) tests with 95% confidence intervals. Pearson correlations, hierarchical linear regression analyses, and generalized linear models assessed relationships, predictors of self-reported outcomes, and group differences, respectively. RESULTS By October 31, 2020, 1405, 80, and 90 participants had consented to participate in the UK, USA, and Mexico, respectively. Descriptive data for the UK daily poll questions indicated that participants were generally following social distancing measures, but worry and negative impacts on families increased as the pandemic progressed. Although participants generally reported feeling that the reasons for current measures had been made clear, there was low trust that the government was doing everything in its power to meet public needs. In the UK, 1282 participants also completed a monthly survey (95% white, 72% female, 21% key or essential workers). Nineteen percent of UK participants reported a pre-existing mental health disorder, 31% reported a pre-existing chronic medical illness, and 35% were over 65. Fifty-seven percent of participants reported being more sedentary since the pandemic began, and 41% reported reduced access to medical care. Those with poorer mental health outcomes lived in more deprived neighborhoods, in larger households (ps < .05), had more pre-existing mental health disorders and medical conditions, and were younger than 65 years (all ps < .001). CONCLUSIONS Communities who have been exposed to additional harm during the COVID-19 pandemic were experiencing worse mental outcomes. Factors including having a medical condition, or living in a deprived neighborhood or larger household were associated with heightened risk. Future longitudinal studies should investigate the link between COVID-19 exposure, mental health, and sociodemographic and residential characteristics.

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Validation of the English Version of the Scale for Psychosocial Factors in Food Allergy and the Relationship with Mental Health, Quality of Life, and Self-Efficacy

Journal of Allergy ◽

10.1155/2016/4850940 ◽

2016 ◽

Vol 2016 ◽

pp. 1-7 ◽

Cited By ~ 3

Author(s):

Rebecca C. Knibb ◽

Aaron Cortes ◽

Christopher Barnes ◽

Carol Stalker

Keyword(s):

Quality Of Life ◽

Mental Health ◽

Food Allergy ◽

Psychosocial Factors ◽

Self Efficacy ◽

Holistic View ◽

Parental Quality ◽

The Uk ◽

The Impact

Background. The Scale for Psychosocial Factors in Food Allergy (SPS-FA) is based on the biopsychosocial model of health and was developed and validated in Chile to measure the interaction between psychological variables and allergy symptoms in the child. We sought to validate this scale in an English speaking population and explore its relationship with parental quality of life, self-efficacy, and mental health. Methods. Parents (n=434) from the general population in the UK, who had a child with a clinical diagnosis of food allergy, completed the SPS-FA and validated scales on food allergy specific parental quality of life (QoL), parental self-efficacy, and general mental health. Findings. The SPS-FA had good internal consistency (alphas = .61–.86). Higher scores on the SPS-FA significantly correlated with poorer parental QoL, self-efficacy, and mental health. All predictors explained 57% of the variance in SPS-FA scores with QoL as the biggest predictor (β=.52). Discussion. The SPS-FA is a valid scale for use in the UK and provides a holistic view of the impact of food allergy on the family. In conjunction with health-related QoL measures, it can be used by health care practitioners to target care for patients and evaluate psychological interventions for improvement of food allergy management.

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Mental health and quality of life burden in Buruli ulcer disease patients in Ghana

Infectious Diseases of Poverty ◽

10.1186/s40249-021-00891-8 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 10 (1) ◽

Author(s):

Yaw Ampem Amoako ◽

Nancy Ackam ◽

John-Paul Omuojine ◽

Michael Ntiamoah Oppong ◽

Abena Gyawu Owusu-Ansah ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Quality Of Life ◽

Mental Health ◽

Physical Health ◽

Buruli Ulcer ◽

Active Infection ◽

Past Infection ◽

Ulcer Disease ◽

Self Reporting Questionnaire ◽

The Impact

Abstract Background Buruli ulcer disease (BUD) is a necrotic skin neglected tropical disease (NTD) that has both a mental and physical health impact on affected individuals. Although there is increasing evidence suggesting a strong association between neglected tropical diseases (NTDs) and mental illness, there is a relative lack of information on BUD’s impact on the mental health and quality of life (QoL) of affected individuals in Ghana. This study is to assess the impact of BUD on mental health and quality of life of patients with active and past BUD infection, and their caregivers. Methods We conducted a case control study in 3 BUD endemic districts in Ghana between August and November 2019. Face-to-face structured questionnaire-based interviews were conducted on BUD patients with active and past infection, as well as caregivers of BUD patients using WHO Quality of Life scale, WHO Disability Assessment Schedule, Self-Reporting Questionnaire, Buruli Ulcer Functional Limitation Score and Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale data tools. Descriptive statistics were used to summarize the characteristics of the study participants. Participant groups were compared using student t test and chi-square (χ2) or Fisher’s exact tests. Mean quality of life scores are reported with their respective 95% confidence intervals. Data was analysed using STATA statistical software. Results Our results show that BUD patients with active and past infection, along with their caregivers, face significant levels of distress and mental health sequelae compared to controls. Depression (P = 0.003) was more common in participants with active (27%) and past BU infection (17%), compared to controls (0%). Anxiety was found in 42% (11/26) and 20% (6/29) of participants with active and past BUD infection compared to 14% (5/36) of controls. Quality of life was also significantly diminished in active BUD infection, compared to controls. In the physical health domain, mean QoL scores were 54 ± 11.1 and 56 ± 11.0 (95% CI: 49.5‒58.5 and 52.2‒59.7) respectively for participants with active infection and controls. Similarly in the psychological domain, scores were lower for active infection than controls [57.1 ± 15.2 (95% CI: 50.9‒63.2) vs 64.7 ± 11.6 (95% CI: 60.8‒68.6)]. Participants with past infection had high QoL scores in both physical [61.3 ± 13.5 (95% CI: 56.1‒66.5)] and psychological health domains [68.4 ± 14.6 (95% CI: 62.7‒74.0)]. Conclusions BUD is associated with significant mental health distress and reduced quality of life in affected persons and their caregivers in Ghana. There is a need for integration of psychosocial interventions in the management of the disease. Graphic abstract

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The Impact of Variable Factors on the Health-Related Quality of Life in the Elderly in Japan and Russia

Current Aging Science ◽

10.2174/1874609812666191105141438 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 13 (2) ◽

pp. 119-128

Author(s):

Kirill Kosilov ◽

Hiroki Amedzawa ◽

Irina Kuzina ◽

Vladimir Kuznetsov ◽

Liliya Kosilova

Keyword(s):

Quality Of Life ◽

Mental Health ◽

Physical Health ◽

The Elderly ◽

Physical And Mental Health ◽

Factors Affecting ◽

Living Together ◽

Elderly Japanese ◽

The Impact

Aim: The study of the impact of socio-economic, demographic factors and polymorbidity on the quality of life associated with health (HRQoL) in elderly people from Japan and Russia. Background: Factors affecting the quality of life of the elderly in both countries are poorly understood. Objective: Make a comparative analysis of factors affecting the quality of life of the elderly of both sexes in Japan and Russia. Methods: The age range in this study is 65-95 years old. For the study of HRQoL, a questionnaire Health Status Survey-Short Form 36v2 was used, including two main domains: physical and mental health. The level of polymorbidity was studied using CIRS-G. The linear regression model of the influence of variables upon HRQoL was calculated for SES, demographic characteristics, and morbidity. Results: Strong associations with HRQoL in the combined sample had a living together with relatives (r=6.94 (5.17-8.72) p<0,05), the incidence rate (r=8.50 (5.51-11.49), p<0.01) and the older age (r=5.39 (2.63-8.16), p<0,01.). The elderly inhabitants of Japan had a higher self-assessment for physical health in the age ranges 65-74 and over 85 years old (p<0.05), and a higher selfassessment of mental health at the age of 75-84 years old. Sixty-eight elderly Japanese and 48% Russians estimated their physical health as normal. Conclusion: The effect of living together, morbidity and age upon HRQoL is manifested equally strongly both among the inhabitants of Japan and among the Russians. The elderly Japanese estimate the state of physical and mental health as a whole higher than their Russian peers.

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O25 The impact of COVID-19 lockdown on mental health and quality of life in patients with inflammatory arthritis

Rheumatology ◽

10.1093/rheumatology/keab246.024 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 60 (Supplement_1) ◽

Author(s):

Melissa Sweeney ◽

Lewis Carpenter ◽

Savia de Souza ◽

Hema Chaplin ◽

Hsiu Tung ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Quality Of Life ◽

Mental Health ◽

Physical Health ◽

Emotional Distress ◽

Inflammatory Arthritis ◽

Mental Health Disorder ◽

Online Questionnaire ◽

Health Measures ◽

The Impact

Abstract Background/Aims COVID-19 lockdown has affected the mental health of many people around the world. People with inflammatory arthritis (IA) are at a higher risk of mental health and psychosocial consequences of the pandemic compared with the general population, since they are potentially more vulnerable to COVID-19 and experience higher rates of existing comorbid mental health disorder. Furthermore, vulnerable patients were advised to self-isolate for 12 weeks, which could further exacerbate emotional distress. This study aimed to explore the impacts of lockdown on mental health and wellbeing, and to determine which factors were associated with worse disease outcomes. Methods An online questionnaire was completed by 338 participants in the UK with an IA condition between June and July 2020. The questionnaire, designed with input from a service user, assessed various aspects of the impact of the pandemic on the quality of life of people with IA, including their mental health. Self-reported visual analogue scales (VAS) for patient global assessment (PGA) of disease activity, pain, fatigue, and emotional distress were completed relating to the previous week, and retrospectively for pre-lockdown (March) and early-lockdown (April). Specific mental health outcomes were further captured using the 8-item Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ8) and the short UCLA loneliness scale. Linear regressions were conducted to determine mental health factors associated with worse outcomes on physical health measures (PGA, pain, and fatigue), controlling for fear of COVID-19 and COVID-19 status. Results Overall, 49% of participants met the PHQ8 criteria for moderate to severe depressive symptoms and 58% reported their mental health had worsened by more than 10 points on the emotional distress VAS during lockdown. Finally, 37% reported they were concerned about loneliness, with 26% indicating this had worsened during lockdown. Emotional distress VAS was significantly associated with PGA (b = 0.21, p< 0.01), pain (b = 0.24, p<0.01), and fatigue (b = 0.36, p<0.01). Similarly, depression was also associated with PGA (b = 0.95, p<0.01), pain (b = 0.92, p<0.01), and fatigue (b = 1.56, p<0.01). However, loneliness was not associated with any of the physical health VAS scores but was associated with the emotional distress VAS (b = 1.83, p=0.00). These results remained consistent for emotional distress, depression, and loneliness as predictors when accounting for fear of COVID-19 and COVID-19 status. Conclusion There has been a clear impact of the pandemic on the mental health of people with IA, and this should be taken into consideration by clinicians, especially as it appears to be related to worse overall reported physical health. The mixed results for loneliness in comparison to other mental health measures may illustrate the inter-relatedness of these aspects of mental and physical health, particularly in the context of lockdown. Disclosure M. Sweeney: None. L. Carpenter: None. S. de Souza: None. H. Chaplin: None. H. Tung: None. E. Caton: None. J. Galloway: None. A. Cope: None. M. Yates: None. S. Norton: None.

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The Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic on Quality of Life and Well-Being in Morocco

10.20944/preprints202006.0287.v1 ◽

2020 ◽

Author(s):

Zouhour Samlani ◽

Yassine Lemfadli ◽

Adil Ait Errami ◽

Sofia Oubaha ◽

Khadija Krati

Keyword(s):

Quality Of Life ◽

Mental Health ◽

Physical Health ◽

Short Form ◽

Demographic Data ◽

Well Being ◽

Chronic Health ◽

Health Score ◽

The Impact

Introduction:The majority of epidemiological reports focus on confirmed cases of COVID-19. In this study, we aim to assess the health and well-being of adults not infected with Covid-19 after two months of quarantine in Morocco.Materials and methods:Two months after the declaration of quarantine in Morocco following the Covid-19 epidemic, we carried out a descriptive cross-sectional study of 279 Moroccan citizens. We used the Short Form Health Survey (SF-12) as a determinant of quality of life, which is based on eight dimensions of health. The data were collected using an electronic questionnaire distributed online. The participants also indicated their socio-demographic data, their knowledge and practices regarding the Covid-19 pandemic and whether they had chronic health problems.Results:The quality of life of all participants was moderately disrupted during the Covid-19 pandemic with a mental health score (MCS) of 34.49 (± 6.44) and a physical health score (PCS) of 36.10 (± 5.82). Participants with chronic diseases scored lower with 29.28 (± 1.23) in mental health (MCS) and 32.51 (± 7.14) in physical health (PCS). The seriousness of COVID-19 has an impact on the quality of life and health well-being of people and this impact is more marked in patients with chronic health problems.Conclusion: Our results confirm the need to pay attention to the health of people who have not been infected with the virus. Our results also point out that uninfected people with chronic illnesses may be more likely to have well-being problems due to quarantine restrictions.

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Time Trends and Seasonal Patterns of Health-Related Quality of Life among U.S. Adults

Public Health Reports ◽

10.1177/003335490912400511 ◽

2009 ◽

Vol 124 (5) ◽

pp. 692-701 ◽

Cited By ~ 17

Author(s):

Haomiao Jia ◽

Erica I. Lubetkin

Keyword(s):

Quality Of Life ◽

Mental Health ◽

Physical Health ◽

Seasonal Effect ◽

Health Related Quality ◽

Physical And Mental Health ◽

Related Quality ◽

Health Related ◽

The Impact

Objectives. Although numerous studies have examined health-related quality of life (HRQOL) longitudinally, little is known about the impact of seasonality on HRQOL. We examined trend and seasonal variations of population HRQOL. Methods. We used data from the monthly Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System (BRFSS). We examined monthly observed mean physically and mentally unhealthy days from January 1993 to December 2006, using the structural time-series model to estimate the trend and seasonality of HRQOL. Results. We found overall worsening physical and mental health during the time period and a significant and regular seasonal pattern in both physical and mental health. The worst physical health was during the winter and the best physical health was during the summer. The mean number of physically unhealthy days in January was 0.63 days higher than in July. The worst mental health occurred during the spring and fall, but the magnitude of the seasonal effect was much smaller. The difference between the best and worst months of mentally unhealthy days was approximately 0.23 days. We found significant differences in unadjusted and season-adjusted unhealthy days in many counties. Conclusions. Our findings can be used to examine time-varying causal factors and the impact of interventions, such as policies designed to improve population health. Our findings also demonstrated the need for calculating season-adjusted HRQOL scores when examining cross-sectional factors on the population HRQOL measures for continuous surveys or longitudinal data.

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An Impact of first COVID lockdown on physical and mental health along with the quality of life in Adults belonging to Maharashtra state

International Journal of Research in Pharmaceutical Sciences ◽

10.26452/ijrps.v12i3.4766 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 12 (3) ◽

pp. 1833-1839

Author(s):

Tejal Patel ◽

Aashi Bhatnagar ◽

Junneshwar Bidve ◽

Ashwin Kshirsagar ◽

Satyam Bhodaji ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Quality Of Life ◽

Mental Health ◽

Physical Health ◽

Adult Population ◽

Physical Health Status ◽

Physical And Mental Health ◽

State Of Mind ◽

The Impact ◽

Self Administered Questionnaire

Amid rise in Covid-19 cases throughout the world including India. So study was initiated to find out the impact on different domains of health. A self-administered questionnaire was prepared, which consist of questions pertaining to the change in physical and mental health along with the quality of life during the lockdown period and was distributed through Google forms. During the survey, a total of 663 responses were collected, of which 604 responses were analyzed. Out of responses that were calculated, the physical health of 370 participants (61.30%) was improved, physical health of 111 (-18.40%) participants has deteriorated and the remaining 123 (20.30%) participants barely changed. The mental health of 274 (-45.30%) participants was declined, 201 (33.20 %) respondents tried to maintain a healthy mental state while 129 (29.30%) members maintained a peaceful state of mind. The quality of life of 290(48%) was adversely affected, 218 (36%) participants were able to maintain a healthier lifestyle, and their quality of life increased, while 96 (15.8%) remained unchanged. Quality of life is most negatively hampered whereas there is improved physical health status in the adult population. All the 3 components are Physical and Mental health along with Quality of life was affected due to Covid-19 related lockdown but out of these, physical health was 61.3% positively affected while mental health and QOL were deteriorated by 45% and 48% respectively.

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Scared behind the wheel: what impact does driving anxiety have on the health and well-being of young older adults?

International Psychogeriatrics ◽

10.1017/s1041610216002271 ◽

2017 ◽

Vol 29 (6) ◽

pp. 1027-1034 ◽

Cited By ~ 3

Author(s):

Megan E. Hempel ◽

Joanne E. Taylor ◽

Martin J. Connolly ◽

Fiona M. Alpass ◽

Christine V. Stephens

Keyword(s):

Quality Of Life ◽

Mental Health ◽

Older Adults ◽

Physical Health ◽

Self Regulation ◽

Well Being ◽

Driving Cessation ◽

The Impact ◽

Health And Well Being

ABSTRACTBackground:Driving anxiety can range from driving reluctance to driving phobia, and 20% of young older adults experience mild driving anxiety, whereas 6% report moderate to severe driving anxiety. However, we do not know what impact driving anxiety has on health and well-being, especially among older drivers. This is problematic because there is a growing proportion of older adult drivers and a potential for driving anxiety to result in premature driving cessation that can impact on health and mortality. The purpose of the current study was to examine the impact of driving anxiety on young older adults’ health and well-being.Method:Data were taken from a longitudinal study of health and aging that included 2,473 young older adults aged 55–70 years. The outcome measures were mental and physical health (SF-12) and quality of life (WHOQOL-8).Results:Hierarchical multiple regression analyses demonstrated that driving anxiety was associated with poorer mental health, physical health, and quality of life, over and above the effect of socio-demographic variables. Sex moderated the effect of driving anxiety on mental health and quality of life in that, as driving anxiety increased, men and women were more likely to have lower mental health and quality of life, but women were more likely to have higher scores compared to men.Conclusion:Further research is needed to investigate whether driving anxiety contributes to premature driving cessation. If so, self-regulation of driving and treating driving anxiety could be important in preventing or reducing the declines in health and quality of life associated with driving cessation for older adults affected by driving anxiety.

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The Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic on Quality of Life and Well-Being in Morocco

10.20944/preprints202006.0287.v2 ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Zouhour Samlani ◽

Yassine Lemfadli ◽

Adil Ait Errami ◽

Sofia Oubaha ◽

Khadija Krati

Keyword(s):

Quality Of Life ◽

Mental Health ◽

Physical Health ◽

Well Being ◽

Health Problems ◽

Chronic Health ◽

Health Score ◽

The Impact ◽

Chronic Health Problems

Introduction: The majority of epidemiological reports focus on confirmed cases of COVID-19. In this study, we aim to assess the health and well-being of adults not infected with Covid-19 after two months of quarantine in Morocco. Materials and methods: Two months after the declaration of quarantine in Morocco following the Covid-19 epidemic, we carried out a descriptive cross-sectional study of 279 Moroccan citizens. We used the Short Form Health Survey (SF-12) as a determinant of quality of life, which is based on eight dimensions of health. The data were collected using an electronic questionnaire distributed online. The participants also indicated their socio-demographic data, their knowledge and practices regarding the Covid-19 pandemic and whether they had chronic health problems. Results: The quality of life of all participants was moderately disrupted during the Covid-19 pandemic with a mental health score (MCS) of 34.49 (± 6.44) and a physical health score (PCS) of 36.10 (± 5.82). Participants with chronic diseases scored lower with 29.28 (± 1.23) in mental health (MCS) and 32.51 (± 7.14) in physical health (PCS). The seriousness of COVID-19 has an impact on the quality of life and health well-being of people and this impact is more marked in people with chronic health problems. Conclusion: Our results confirm the need to pay attention to the health of people who have not been infected with the virus. Our results also point out that uninfected people with chronic illnesses may be more likely to have well-being problems due to quarantine restrictions.

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Effects of depression on quality of life in Medicare beneficiaries with prostate cancer

Journal of Clinical Oncology ◽

10.1200/jco.2006.24.18_suppl.8510 ◽

2006 ◽

Vol 24 (18_suppl) ◽

pp. 8510-8510

Author(s):

C. Chang ◽

S. J. Knight ◽

C. L. Bennett

Keyword(s):

Quality Of Life ◽

Mental Health ◽

Prostate Cancer ◽

Physical Health ◽

Cancer Patients ◽

Health Problems ◽

The Past ◽

Physical Health Problems ◽

The Impact

8510 Background: Depression is very common in the elderly and is particularly costly because of associated mortality, excess disability, and interactions with other physical health problems. We aimed to examine the impact of depression on quality of life in the older prostate cancer patients receiving Medicare benefits. Methods: Data came from the 2003 Cohort VI Baseline Medicare Health Outcomes Survey. Among the 109,115 individuals, only those who were under treatment for prostate cancer and completed the survey themselves were included in this study (n=2,191). Quality of life was assessed using the SF-36 questionnaire and the physical and mental health component scores (higher scores indicating better health) were analyzed. Results: Eighty-eight percent were whites, 75% were married, 76% had at least high school education, 45% were aged 65 to 74, and 55% were aged 75 and older. Those who reported having been depressed in the past two weeks (n=453; 21%) had significantly lower physical health (34.06 vs. 40.24; p < .001) and mental health (41.14 vs. 54.41; p < .001) than those who did not. Similar patterns were observed for those who endorsed questions indicating “depression much of the time in the past year” and “depression most of the time in the past 2 years”. Conclusions: Depression is prevalent among older men diagnosed with prostate cancer, and those who acknowledge being depressed in the past 2 weeks to 2 years have significantly worse mental and physical health. Attention to depression, in addition to prostate cancer specific issues, should be considered among prostate cancer patients who report mental or physical health problems. Early detection and treatment of depression in this population could potentially alleviate their suffering and improve their quality of life. No significant financial relationships to disclose.

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